v2 - amazon s3guide+2.0.pdf · look for words of wisdom from various sources throughout the guide....

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Thanks!

Alberta Recreation and Parks Association (ARPA) would like to thank all those who contributed:

Alberta Health Services for partnering on this initiative.

Alberta Cancer Prevention Legacy Fund for funding the Active Community Strategy initiative.

Active Community Strategy (ACS) Communities: Lethbridge, Irricana, High Level, Camrose, Airdrie, Calling Lake, Cardel Place - Calgary, Grande Prairie, High River, Leduc, Longview, Okotoks, Pincher Creek and Sylvan Lake.

Active Community Strategy Resource Group and Provincial Active Living Integration Group:

Alberta Centre for Active Living and Active Living Partners Be Fit For Life Fitness Resource Centre Active Creative Engaged (ACE) Communities Team Alberta Fitness Leadership Certification Association Ever Active Schools Alberta Health and Wellness Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation Alberta Health Services – Chronic Disease Prevention Alberta Recreation and Parks Association

Facilitated by: Carol Petersen ~ BPR Consulting [email protected]

Karen Driedger ~ fourward thinking [email protected]

Created and written by: Karen Driedger

Designed by: Lyle Schulz

Revised Working Copy, March 2013

This Guide is continually evolving. The first edition (April, 2011) has been revised to reflect learnings from the Active Community Strategy pilot communities and recent policy and research. The intent is for it to be a living document, building on community experiences and the growing body of evidence that supports developing Active Community Strategies.

Copyright 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, now known or in the future) without the written permission of the publishers.

For more information on creating an Active Community Strategy or to

receive copies of this Guide contact ARPA at www.arpaonline.ca

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.arpaonline.ca/

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Table of Contents Table of Contents .................................................................................. 1

Purpose of the Guide ............................................................................ 2

How to use the Guide ............................................................................ 3

Section 1: Introduction ......................................................................... 5

Why? ............................................................................................................... 6

What is an Active Community Strategy? ......................................................... 8

How will an Active Community Strategy Get People More Active? ............... 11

How did We Get Here? ................................................................................. 13

Section 2: The Active Community Strategy Model ........................... 14

Core Area 1: Activators ................................................................................. 18

Core Area 2: Foundation ............................................................................... 20

Core Area 3: Culture ..................................................................................... 22

Core Area 4: Activities ................................................................................... 24

Questions for Core Areas: ............................................................................. 27

Section 3: Facilitator Guide ................................................................ 28

Understanding the Active Community Strategy Model .................................. 29

Step-by-Step “How To” .............................................................................. 31

Four Steps in Facilitating this Process .......................................................... 32

1. Ready… ......................................................................................... 34

2. Set… .............................................................................................. 51

3. Go!.................................................................................................. 61

4. Celebrate ........................................................................................ 72

Section 4: Tools .................................................................................. 83

ACE Communities Resources ....................................................................... 84

Active Community Strategy Tools and Templates ......................................... 85

Web Resources ........................................................................................... 111

Active Community Strategies Online ........................................................... 112

Print Resources ........................................................................................... 113

Resources for Provincial Action .................................................................. 114

Criteria for Community Selection ................................................................. 114

Appendices ........................................................................................ 115

Appendix A: Evidence and Beneficial Practice ............................................ 115

Appendix B: Historical Path ......................................................................... 116

Appendix C: Provincial Process .................................................................. 117

2

Purpose of the Guide

The purpose of this guide is to support communities in building Active Community Strategies. It is a tool that will:

Provide compelling reasons to develop an Active Community Strategy.

Share what an active community and an Active Community Strategy are.

Walk communities through the steps of how to develop an Active Community Strategy.

Support the facilitation process to develop an Active Community Strategy.

Provide tools to help communities develop Active Community Strategies.

The guide is not a stand-alone document

Use the guide together with support from coaches and facilitators in recreation or health promotion. They may be in your community, or from provincial organizations such as the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association or Alberta Health Services.

The co-facilitators of the Active Community Strategy initiative can be contacted for more information.

This guide builds on the concepts and resources in, “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009). See the Tools section in this guide for information on where to obtain a copy.

Part science, part art

The development process for the Active Community Strategy integrates research and ideas. Both are valuable. This guide is based on evidence, beneficial practice, community experience and knowledge. Many of the resources and sources used to develop this guide are included in the Tools section and in Appendix A.

3

How to use the Guide

This Guide is divided into 3 sections.

Section 1 is for those interested in increasing physical activity in their community: citizens, community leaders and organizations. It provides reasons why your community will want to develop an Active Community Strategy, information about what an Active Community Strategy is, and introduces how the strategy will get more people, more active, more often.

Section 2 introduces and explains the Active Community Strategy Model. The content in this section is the basis for strategy development and action. If you are a community leader, citizen, facilitator working with communities or provincial leader, this section is for you.

Section 3 focuses on community process. It is a facilitator guide meant to assist leaders and facilitators who are working with communities to build an Active Community Strategy.

Section 4 includes a variety of tools and resources that support building an Active Community Strategy.

Enjoy the journey of building an Active Community Strategy to

get more people, more active, more often!

4

FACT!

Check out some interesting recreation, health and physical activity facts.

QUOTE!

Look for words of wisdom from various sources throughout the guide.

Wordle created by Active Community Strategy leaders describing an Active Community. www.wordle.com

TIP!

These facilitation tips support the community process and facilitator.

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Only 59% of Albertans get enough physical

activity.

Communities in Action

Ten communities from across Alberta are developing Active

Community Strategies right now! (2013)

From the northern communities of Grande Prairie and

Calling Lake to the far southwest community of Pincher

Creek, and those between; Airdrie, Cardel Place in Calgary,

High River, Leduc, Longview, Okotoks, and Sylvan Lake,

these communities are building momentum at a local level to

get more people, more active, more often.

Each have identified priorities specific to their community;

youth, communication, leadership, healthy generations,

walking, policy, neighbourhoods, collaboration and

connectivity.

Look for their stories to unfold!

Introduction

This section is for those interested in increasing physical activity in their community: citizens, local community leaders and organizations.

It includes:

Reasons your community will want to develop an Active Community Strategy.

What an active community and Active Community Strategy are.

How the strategy will get people more active.

A brief background of the initiative.

6

95% of Albertans believe recreation and parks are essential services that benefit the entire

community.

Why?

You may be wondering why an Active Community Strategy is important.

Do you: An Active Community:

Want your kids to be able to play in the front yard and ride their bikes down the street without worrying about them?

Want to be around to watch your grandchildren grow up?

Want to be able to chat with your neighbour as you mow the lawn or shovel the walk and stop to share a drink?

Want to go to the Canada Day celebration, see people you know and feel good about your community?

Creates safer, more socially cohesive and engaged communities with reduced crime and violence.

Supports lifelong health and well-being: physically, socially, emotionally, spiritually and mentally.

Strengthens community by connecting families and neighbours.

Develops meaningful relationships giving a sense of belonging.

Decreases social isolation and bridges diverse population groups.

7

34,000 full-time equivalent jobs were created in recreation, sport and active living generating over $1 billion in labour income in Alberta (2001)

Still wondering why?



Want to walk or bike downtown on a Saturday afternoon or to work?

Want to walk outside your door and take a deep breath of fresh, clean air and see lush green trees?

Supports the use of active transportation.

Provides safe, quality outdoor and indoor environments reducing environmental impacts.

Want to maximize your budget and stretch your spending power?

Want to grow your small business locally?

Want your community to have interesting, vibrant businesses?

Want to keep that small town feeling?

Want to make a difference in your community?

Provides opportunities to be active in unstructured activities and natural environments making it affordable.

Creates healthier workplaces and employees.

Strengthens local economies.

Recognizes the essential role of volunteers and collaboration amongst sectors that encourages innovation.

Engages community ownership and vitality.

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These are some personal reasons why you might want to build an active community. It‟s bigger than just you. It‟s about collective impact.

Collective impact happens when community is engaged.

Why create an Active Community Strategy?

To empower citizens and communities to invest their time and resources to build stronger, vibrant and active communities in line with their vision of improved quality of life.

What does your community want? and

How will an Active Community Strategy make it happen?

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What is an Active Community Strategy?

An Active Community Strategy is a comprehensive plan to increase physical activity in your community. It is more than just programs. The goal is to create a society built around communities where more citizens are engaged in their community, recreation and physical activity.

An Active Community Strategy will:

Provide communities with a roadmap to build a more physically active community.

Create a way for community groups to collaborate and communicate for sustainable outcomes.

Help organizations and citizens learn about and use existing resources.

Support communities to determine their priorities.

Grow and change based on local needs and strengths.

Core values of an active community

“HOW you

do it is as

important as

WHAT you

do….”

An Active Community Strategy is a plan to get your

community more physically active.

Daily physical activity is a cornerstone of health and quality of life.

Health and wellness are a personal and community responsibility.

Community cohesion, voluntarism and civic participation are central to achieving an active, healthy community.

Diversity is valued and respected.

A holistic, comprehensive approach is vital as much of life‟s meaning lies in interconnectedness.

Inclusion of all citizens in community life and services is fundamental.

Local empowerment and self-determination are essential for wise decision-making.

Creativity is valued and nurtured.

Sustainability of our natural and built environments and of our cultural assets demands a culture of stewardship.

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Communities develop a comprehensive strategy to:

Increase opportunities for regular, enjoyable physical activity in communities, homes, schools and workplaces.

Reduce the economic, environmental, social and cultural barriers that limit participation in community activity.

Create safe environments that encourage and support physical activity and engagement in community.

Empower community members to fully participate in planning and participating actively in their community.

Enhance and sustain parks and recreation facilities.

Position recreation, sport and physical activity as priorities to increase health and quality of life.

Support social, economic and environmental sustainability by investing in physical activity.

Outcomes of an Active Community Strategy include:

Collaborative, cross-sectoral partnerships (recreation, health, community services,

transportation, education, business, faith-based and others invested in creating healthy communities) that provide leadership to build healthy, active communities.

An evidence-based Active Community Strategy (linking existing community plans, resources and initiatives) that articulates goals and long term plans enabling a physically active community based on sustainability.

Customized action plans that include indicators of success/progress based on community priorities that engage and activate more people to be more active.

An increase in community health and well-being as communities implement their Active Community Strategies.

“Make the

healthy choice

the easy

choice!”

“There is not

just ONE way,

there is

A way.”

Letty McFall

11


High Level, Camrose, Irricana and Lethbridge, the four pilot

communities for Active Community Strategies, were all Active,

Creative, Engaged (ACE) Communities. ACE focused on strengthening

leadership, collaboration and innovation through recreation, parks,

arts, culture and heritage. These communities all had community

capacity and understood community leadership before developing

their Active Community Strategies. Starting with an understanding

of the community development process and with trusted,

collaborative relationships across sectors makes a big difference.

Using this process works!

How will an Active Community Strategy Get People More Active?

A community development approach

The process that has been effective in Alberta to get people active and engaged is based on planning using a community development approach. It follows the “Planning Framework Using a Community Development Approach” (included in the Tools Section). It can be found in “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009).

Communities start by building on the

strengths and assets in their community.

Working across sectors, they share

resources and collaborate to identify

priorities. Priorities they choose to pursue

are based on their participation and unique

circumstances. The first five steps differentiate

this framework from traditional planning models.

This is the part that builds relationships, trust

and community ownership. The other steps are

important in making it happen.

At the heart of it all are community members

who are experts on their communities. They

drive implementation and action.

Leadership capacity is critical.

“The ACE Planning

Framework made me

realize that things

CAN be done…things

CAN change,

attitudes CAN be

changed too!”

Participant – ACE Community Building Workshop

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Community leadership is vital

Champions are needed to make things happen. We call them community leaders. Throughout the Active Community Strategy process community leadership development is supported and encouraged.

Who are community leaders?

You are! Each of us has a responsibility as a citizen.

Friends, family and neighbours.

Professionals from all sectors affected by or working in recreation, sport, health and wellness.

Politicians, educators, business and faith leaders.

Community members, the forgotten and outspoken.

13

4 out of 5 Albertans used public parks and/or recreation services during the

year.

How did We Get Here?

A lot of work has gone into increasing the health and well-being of Canadians over the years. To see a progression of key landmarks see the Historical Path in Appendix B.

The Active Community Strategy initiative grew out of previous Alberta Parks and Recreation initiatives. Alberta Active Communities (AAC) began in 2004 and in 2008 AAC evolved into Active, Creative, Engaged (ACE) Communities. After working with over thirty communities across Alberta, the Active Community Strategy initiative was piloted.

Four communities piloted Active Community Strategies in 2010-2011. As a result of the success Alberta Recreation and Parks Association partnered with Alberta Health Services in 2012 to launch in ten more communities. The Alberta Cancer Prevention Legacy Fund provided funding.

At the same time a national strategy, Active Canada 20/20, and provincial policy, Active Alberta were being developed. These continue to inform and support Active Community Strategy development.

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95% of Albertans agree that recreation contributes to environmental

stewardship.

S

ecti

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2 Communities in Action

Communities come in all shapes and sizes. They

are not always identified by geographic

boundaries.

At the provincial level the Active Community

Strategy initiative started an informal Provincial

Active Living Integration Group. The intent is to

bring interested parties together to see what

opportunities there might be. The focus is on

supporting healthy, active and engaged

communities. We’ve already had interesting

initiatives and partnerships materialise.

The Active Community Strategy Model

In this section the Active Community

Strategy model is introduced and explained in detail. The content in this section is the basis for strategy development and action. If you are a community leader, citizen, facilitator working with communities or provincial leader, this section is for you.

What you will find:

Big picture overview.

Breakdown of the four core areas:

o Activators o Foundation o Culture o Activities

Questions for core areas.

15

The Active Community Strategy Model

Activators: People to See,

Messages to Share

Culture: Energizing Recreation,

Policies to Promote

Foundation: Research to Inform,

Investment to Support

Activities: Places to Go,

Things to Do,

Opportunities to

Learn

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Overview of the model

The Active Community Strategy Model provides a comprehensive picture to help guide communities in building a more physically active community. Initially communities may focus on one or two areas of the model. This may be most practical based on their resources and the priorities that they agree on. However, coordinated action is needed in all of the core areas. The coordinated action will support active recreation, physical activity and healthy living over the long-term. At some point all need to be addressed.

The four core areas and nine sub-categories in the model explain the features that are necessary to build an active community. This model was designed to:

• Introduce 4 core areas of focus that will get more people, more active, more often.

1. Activators (white in the middle & around swooshes)

People to See - social environment, leadership & governance, partnerships & collaboration

Messages to Share – communications, marketing

2. Foundation (green swoosh)

Research to Inform – research, evidence-based, evaluation, beneficial practices

Investment to Support – sustainability; economic, social and environmental

3. Culture (red swoosh)

Energizing Recreation - rethinking operations, creative solutions, shifting the culture

Policies to Promote – policy, advocacy

4. Activities (blue swoosh)

Places to Go – natural, built

Things to Do – special events, programs, incentives

Opportunities to Learn – education, knowledge, skills

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• Illustrate movement and action generated by „People to See‟ and „Messages to Share‟ in the centre of the model. The Activators drive implementation and action in the other core areas.

• Depict multi-level relationships with a focus on community. This initiative focuses on planning and taking action at the community level, not on programming for individuals or action at the provincial level.

There has been a lot of attention focused on increasing individual physical activity through specific programs and services.

Regional and provincial efforts are often out of direct citizen control.

The community is in the middle of this spectrum and has the highest potential impact on health and quality of life.

All levels are interrelated however, community is where citizens can and are taking action to improve overall quality of life.

A combination of efforts at all levels will increase the ability to affect widespread change.

An Active Community Strategy influences and affects all levels.

This reflects a socio-ecological perspective - influence and impact of multiple levels on each other.

In this model representation of socio-ecological relationship levels are segmented into three:

The centre circle represents individual, interpersonal, and organizational relationships.

The red, blue and green swooshes‟ represent community relationships.

The out-lying white represents the regional, provincial/territorial, national and global relationships.

Read on for more detail on the four core areas and nine categories in the Active Community Strategy model.

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85% of Albertans agree recreation programs, parks and facilities in their community make it easier for people to socialize and feel included.

Core Area 1: Activators

People to See

Social environment, leadership & governance, partnerships & collaboration

Social environment supports and resources are key in

building active communities, developing leadership capacity and collaborative partnerships. Social accessibility to active recreation/physical activity enhances a sense of belonging through inclusion.

Develop a strong voice for recreation and active communities through advocacy. Influence local government planning, policy development and build sustainable funding for active community initiatives and leadership development. Work with inactive community members to strategize appropriate social supports that will encourage physical activity.

Determine common features among stakeholders. From the national to local level (Alberta Health and Wellness, Alberta Health Services, Alberta Urban Municipalities Association, doctors, social workers, pharmacist, justice, education and recreation and sport practitioners and organizations) build strategies that go beyond specific agendas and move to a social environment that supports improved health and quality of life. This bridges expertise as well as strategy with implementation. With a collaborative, shared leadership style, communities can engage leaders, build human capital, and optimize use of scarce resources.

Examples and tools:

ARPA multi-municipal cooperation webinar

Inactivity reports

Intergenerational mentoring, fund development

Networking and partnership development, volunteer training, databases

Run for Council/Mayor

“In Alberta…Recreation and Parks Matter! Research Summary” ARPA 2008

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94% of Albertans agree that recreation participation is an important way of ensuring that children and youth live healthy lifestyles.

Messages to Share

Marketing & communications

Effective marketing and communication efforts are vital to the success of any active community initiative. These are the distribution channels to connect with the public. Determine your intended audience and choose the most appropriate forms of communication. Invest in social marketing campaigns that are built to create behaviour change and use social media to find out what people want.

Use communication strategies to raise the profile of active recreation and physical activity. Share the benefits of recreation and the importance of community environments in promoting active living. Promote access to facilities and services for targeted groups. Technology is your friend!

Communication is more than messages. Provide opportunities for two-way conversations inviting people to lead and take part in the process. This increases the likelihood of active engagement and participation. Utilize local knowledge to build relationships and skills that add to sustainability. Involve media partners to report on the activities and through collaborative initiatives that boost their market share. Expand the scope by building greater involvement, recognition and understanding of the Active Community Strategy. Offer workshops, speak at conferences and join online forums to start developing a culture of active living and health.

Evaluate the forms of communication to determine whether they connect with the intended audiences. Promotion strategies should help to ensure that policy, programmatic and infrastructure goals are successfully achieved.

Examples and tools:

Become an ARPA blogger

Social networking sites- Facebook, Instagram

Community newsletters, books, articles, news releases, fact sheets

Artistic forms, drama, dance, sculpture

Twitter

Online forums

Conference presentations

Personal invitations, word of mouth

Social marketing tools

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Albertans who value leisure more than work (47%) are happier, healthier and more satisfied with life than those who consider work more important (32%).

Core Area 2: Foundation

Research to Inform

Research, developmental evaluation & beneficial practices

• Research helps to answer questions, direct action and gain support. Utilize the many existing resources in your community and across the province to get involved in studies and research projects. Rewards include expertise at little or no cost to the community, new perspectives which can lead to innovative solutions and opportunities, relationship building and new connections, and exposure potentially leading to interest economically, socially and communally. Investigate and incorporate promising practices that have proven success in increasing active recreation/physical activity in other communities.

• Ongoing evaluation of both process and outcomes can generate instant feedback and help in adapting efforts along the way to influence behaviour change. Continuous reflection generates leadership development and adjustment, which supports a proactive approach and the ability to react quickly to change. Pre and post measurement will indicate the change; learning and involvement from start to finish. Become proactive and develop evaluation plans to continuously improve services that meet community priorities, support healthy lifestyle changes and enhance overall quality of life.

Examples and tools:

ACE Community Debrief Sheet

Universities and Colleges

Alberta Centre for Active Living www.centre4activeliving.ca

Provincial Fitness Unit www.provincialfitnessunit.ca

Canadian Sport for Life www.canadiansportforlife.ca

Ever Active Schools www.everactive.org

Health Assessment Tool for Schools from Ever Active Schools

Healthy Alberta www.healthyalberta.com

Alberta Health and Wellness www.health.alberta.ca

Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation www.asrpwf.ca

Public Health Agency of Canada www.phac-aspc.gc.ca

Alberta Recreation and Parks Association www.arpaonline.ca

The National Benefits Hub www.benefitshub.ca

Canadian Parks and Recreation Association www.cpra.ca

Leisure Information Network www.lin.ca

21

$2.8 Billion spent by citizens, governments and organizations on recreation, sport and active living in Alberta (2001)

Investment to Support

Sustainability – economic, social & environmental

• Sustainability includes economic, social and environmental aspects. We often focus on economic, however, it is important that the investment includes all aspects. The investment is for our future generations.

• Economic support comes in the form of funding and sponsorship that are important in order to maintain long-term viability. Online methods of obtaining support are cropping up in the form of donation bidding, pledges and online auctions. Sponsorships are used by businesses to build their social capital and goodwill. Search out avenues that will link philanthropic agendas with animating community health and wellbeing.

• Social forms of investment include volunteerism, in-kind support, decision-makers at all levels of government and from a variety of sectors, and community members. If there is no will to build an active community it will be difficult to further the idea of a healthier, active community.

• Environmental support may be overlooked but is necessary to achieve sustainability both with the natural and built environments. The ability of the natural environment to sustain an active community is closely tied to its long-term success. Potable water, clean air to breathe and access to energy is fundamental to our survival. Many green and clean initiatives such as: LEED building standards, recycling programs, and anti-pollution campaigns, are driving communities towards more sustainable environments both natural and built. Consider the environmental impacts of all initiatives and invest in the future by partnering with and utilizing sustainable resources and methods.

Examples and tools:

Online donation bidding sites & auctions

Volunteer Calgary www.volunteercalgary.ab.ca

Volunteer Edmonton www.volunteeredmonton.com

Volunteer Alberta – www.volunteeralberta.ab.ca

Canada Green Building Council: Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Building Standards and Certification – www.cagbc.org

Recycling programs and green initiatives

Alberta Go Green Team – www.abcrc.com

Charity Village – www.charityvillage.ca

http://www.volunteercalgary.ab.ca/

http://www.volunteeredmonton.com/

http://www.volunteeralberta.ab.ca/

http://www.cagbc.org/

http://www.abcrc.com/

http://www.charityvillage.ca/

22

Albertans with lower household incomes are less physically active.

Core Area 3: Culture

Energizing Recreation

Rethinking operations, creative solutions & shifting the culture

Explore new partnerships with business, school districts, faith communities, justice, health & social services. Their expertise in working with different people can help in building inclusive opportunities and environments.

Rethink management and operation of natural spaces and community places. Shared ownership, multi-municipal cooperation and regional agreements build interdependence, increase efficiency and decrease costs, especially in rural and remote communities. Long term planning including facility development and use is needed in order to determine the best use of existing resources and development for the future. Lifecycle plans, sustainable, green development, use of existing facilities and access to multi- purpose space needs consideration for the health and wellness of future generations.

Utilize research and trend forecasting to understand shifts in practice, use and services. A shift from structured to flexible, unstructured activity impacts the types of programs and spaces that people desire to enhance their quality of life. Utilize technology to engage, inform and develop systems that increase inclusion and support more people to be more active, more often.

Focus on: Creative solutions to reorient the delivery systems of sectors that influence the ability to be more physically active and healthy such as: recreation, health, and planning.

Shifting the culture to support risk-taking, collaboration and partnerships that lead to innovative approaches to engage and enhance active communities. Deliberate action to purposefully increase access, “It‟s not good enough to simply have on paper.”

Examples and tools:

Canadian Sport For Life/Active For Life (physical literacy)

After school – Critical hours initiatives

Comprehensive School Health

Canadian Tire Kidsport

Equipment lending libraries

Positive ticketing

Joint use agreements

Canadian Index of Wellbeing www.ciw.ca

23

Public recreation and parks play an expanding role in enabling quality of life – and Albertans see those services as crucial local government priorities.

Policies to Promote

Policy & advocacy

Policy development is the key to institutionalizing supportive environments for an active community. Including an active community philosophy into the system and linking it to existing plans strengthens the profile and support. Identify and attempt to influence changes in public policies and standards as well as organizational practices, all levels of government and types of groups can be encouraged to build in structural and operating principles that encourage physical activity in a variety of areas such as; funding, public spaces, and integration of smart growth principles.

Efforts include advocacy and relationship building with policy makers, presentations to policy boards, influencing employer and school policies as well as educating policy makers, citizens, professionals and advocates about the need for local environments that support active living.

Policy tactics are those that end with a policy change at the local, provincial and national levels. Ensuring that policy converts to action through regulation and strategies is key in affecting positive change.

Examples and tools:

Daily Physical Activity (DPA) in schools, Child Tax Credit, helmet bylaw, bicycle parking bylaw

Joint use agreements (schools-municipalities), parking limits, greenway master plan, pedestrian friendly street design guidelines, developer green space & sidewalk, transportation planning policy

Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) Healthy Alberta Communities Policy

Active Alberta Policy

Subsidized fee policy

Ever Active Schools, Healthy School Policy

June is Recreation and Parks Month

Alberta Recreation and Parks Association (ARPA) Foundations for Action Bulletin Series

Canadian Index of Wellbeing www.ciw.ca

http://www.ciw.ca/

24

93% of Albertans agree that playgrounds and play facilities are critical to our children‟s development and welfare.

Core Area 4: Activities

Places to Go

Natural and built environment

Physical infrastructure projects are strategies to directly impact built (streets, patios, facilities and trails) and natural (topography, weather) environments, improving access to physical activity and enhancing safety (e.g. parks, open spaces, pedestrian improvements at intersections). These projects include a wide range of sizes from community trails and sidewalks to signage. They also include public (e.g. schools, recreation facilities) and private spaces (e.g. workplaces, schools, homes).

Community design for active living involves considering elements that will support active recreation/physical activity when planning and designing existing and future spaces in traditional and unconventional places.

Active transportation is a key element in terms of planning and access. Whether it be walking, biking, public transportation or parking, consider transportation for getting to work, school or to recreate.

Examples and tools:

Alberta Health Services WalkABle Workshops

Audits of how children get to school

Ensuring safe routes to school

Active transportation research and implementation practices

Bike racks on busses, benches along trails

Safety standards, lighting, signage


Community walkability tools

Children and nature toolkits

Play works

Facility Inventory Tracker System (FITS)

Communities in Bloom

25

Only 39% of Albertans are confident that they can be physically active when the weather is bad.

Things to Do

Special events, programs & incentives

Life course programs that support active living are organized, on-going activities that engage individuals in active recreation/physical activity either directly or indirectly. They are aimed at giving local people of all ages and ability levels, cultures and socio-economic status, a focal point to motivate activity. Programs respond to local demands, are designed to address local needs and embrace local opportunities. Structured and unstructured (drop in activities) activities combine to provide a range of services. Programs may foster family activity, individual participation or group involvement. Skill level may range from beginner to more advanced. They may be designed for the general population, for specially targeted groups that may be underserved, or those who require special consideration e.g. obese, Aboriginal, seniors, people with disabilities. Program considerations may also focus on how we spend our time - at home, work, travel and during our leisure (discretionary time).

Other approaches may reward individuals for adopting more active habits through incentives or other encouragements, such as benefits for employees or students who walk or bicycle to work, corporate discounts, exercise referral programs or passport incentives, sports or volunteer/leadership awards can also encourage involvement. These extrinsic rewards may lead people to realizing the intrinsic rewards that physical activity can provide such as increased self-esteem, a sense of belonging, and overall well being.

Special events bring community together to celebrate or participate, awards celebrations are designed to encourage and support ongoing activity. Opportunities to rent space (sport fields, gyms, pools, theatres, parks) for classes or events, workshops or celebrations are mutually beneficial to the vendor and the renter encouraging and supporting physical activity on an economical level as well as for health.

Examples & tools:

Communities ChooseWell has a comprehensive listing of Healthy Eating, Active Living and Health Promotion Resources http://arpaonline.ca/choosewell

Walking Bus and walking clubs

SOGO Active

Be Fit for Life & cardiac rehabilitation programs

Community gardens

Bicycle recycle initiatives

Recreation programs, drop-in, adult learn to swim, field rentals, summer camps

Workplace wellness initiatives

Seniors Games or day programs

Kids at Hope, Kids of Steel Triathlon

www.centre4activeliving.ca/physical-activity-for-all/ecological/individual.html

http://arpaonline.ca/choosewell

http://www.centre4activeliving.ca/physical-activity-for-all/ecological/individual.html

http://www.centre4activeliving.ca/physical-activity-for-all/ecological/individual.html

26

89% of Albertans agree that physical activity will reduce their chances of getting serious health problems.

Opportunities to Learn

Education, knowledge & skills

• Public education continues to be important to build understanding and support for individual well-being and community quality of life. Without a call for action, public education alone will not affect change. Leisure education/literacy and physical literacy at the community level helps build community capacity and the ability to take action. Educational institutions and initiatives have the audience (students and parents) and know-how to work within the system. Marrying active community outcomes with curriculum goals provides an exceptional opportunity to access and influence a captive audience.

• Ideally each community will have recreation, active living, and health promotion specialists. Support and incentives for formal training in recreation, health promotion, leadership & community development, and marketing should be considered along with local training initiatives. Involving youth in leadership development opportunities and training programs, scholarships for future education and support for existing professional development opportunities such as provincial conferences, can be a means to enhance local expertise. Focused training for coaches, exercise professionals, community facilitators and leaders via a range of delivery methods e.g. webinars, workshops, online courses, increases the reach throughout the province. Focus on building local capacity and leverage the use of external professionals & agencies that can share their expertise to create a solid foundation for a more sustainable system.

Examples and tools:

ACE leader inventory and competencies

ARPA recreation professional base competencies

ARPA webinar training

ARPA community page www.arpaonline.ca

Centre for Active Living website & provincial forums

ARPA annual conference, Parks Forum, Youth Development Through Recreation Services Symposium


Physical Activity for Public Health Conference

Communities ChooseWell http://arpaonline.ca/choosewell

Canadian Sport for Life - physical literacy

AUMA webinars

HIGH FIVE

University of Alberta and Mount Royal University programs

Alberta Fitness Leaders Certification Association – Provincial Fitness Unit

National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) training

Everybody Gets to Play


http://www.everactive.org/

http://arpaonline.ca/choosewell

27

Questions for Core Areas:

How to use this tool

These questions can be used when you are meeting with your community to identify opportunities. They may be used to start conversations around what an active community looks like, what it may include or to introduce and explore content of the core areas. They can be a great way to open a session with each person picking a question then sharing their answer with the group. You may also want to write other questions for each of the core areas that are more specific to your community.

Activators

People to See - What existing partnerships or collaborations exist that support Active Living in (your community)? What partnership opportunities would you like to create?

Messages to Share – What is the most effective method of communication with community members in (your community)? How do you engage new or different residents in (your community)?

Foundation

Research to Inform – How are you using research and/or evidence to inform your activities in (your community)? What research would be helpful to develop an Active Community Strategy?

Investment to Support - What sponsorship or funding opportunities do you have access to or are you aware of that focus on physical activity or active living? What other investments are needed to build sustainability?

Culture

Energizing Recreation - What big structures/systems do you think need to be re-evaluated or need a shift to create a more citizen-driven culture towards building an active community? Share an example from (your community) that is progressive.

Policies to Promote - What policy, plan or strategy in (your community) are you aware of that supports an Active Community? And how is it being advocated for?

Activities

Places to Go - What place do you consider a great place to be active in (your community) that could be used more often?

Things to Do - In (your community), what special event, activity or incentive program engages/involves the most diverse group of people? Why is this?

Opportunities to Learn – What kind of training are you aware of, or are you providing related to leadership development, skill-building, leisure education, other areas related to health and active living? What kind of professional development is needed in the community?

28

S

ecti

on

3

93% of Albertans agree that recreation participation contributes to an individual’s health and well-being.

Facilitator Guide

The goal of this section is to assist community leaders and facilitators working with communities to build Active Community Strategies. Community leaders may take a facilitation role and or utilize the expertise of coaching and facilitation support from the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association or other health and wellness organizations. In any case, this guide will help support the journey of building an Active Community Strategy.

This section includes information on:

Understanding the Active Community Strategy model.

A step-by-step “how to” outline of four steps in facilitating the process:

o Ready o Set o Go o Celebrate

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Understanding the Active Community Strategy Model (See the ACS Model for more details)

As a facilitator it is important to understand the Active Community Strategy model. The model includes content that communities will use to help base their decisions on. To support communities in developing strategies there are three notable sets of experience that are valuable:

Facilitation skills

Community development experience

Understanding of influencers on physical activity and behaviour change

Programs and facilities have been the primary focus for getting people active. This process and model take a comprehensive approach that requires a shift in thinking. Research indicates that in order to influence behaviour change social and physical environments need to be supportive. Intentional action on policy development, communication, environmental factors, shifting cultures and leadership are crucial.

With this shift, opportunities for new partnerships bubble up. For example, recreation and health service providers working with planners, justice workers, entrepreneurs and faith leaders. This requires relationship building, understanding the culture of different sectors and the creation of a new way. Cross-functional teams are emerging and the importance of working across silos is well known. Still it may be new and uncomfortable at first. The process takes time, requires trust building, sharing control and power to work collaboratively. Give it time.

TIP! Build diversity into the team and utilize expertise in areas that may not be your strength to fully support communities.

TIP! Assumptions can cloud communication. Ask questions to clarify meaning. Provide the space for meaningful and respectful conversation.

30

A few points to keep in mind as you facilitate this process:

Maintain the groups‟ focus on a comprehensive strategy. Developing one program is not the intent.

Increase collaboration and relationship building when preparing and facilitating sessions.

Encourage the group to decide how they will stay connected and make decisions.

The next page shows a visual of the four steps in this process and then each step is discussed in detail. These will help you coach communities to build an Active Community Strategy.

TIP! Ask who else should be at the table throughout the process.

31

Step-by-Step “How To”

32

Four Steps in Facilitating this Process

How to prepare, plan and take community action

Developing an Active Community Strategy follows, “A Planning Framework Using a Community Development Approach” that can be found in the Tools section. The ten steps in the framework have been clustered into four:

1. Ready

2. Set

3. Go

4. Celebrate

Each of the four steps takes approximately 3 months. The intent is to develop a strategy within 8 to 9 months based on community readiness and local circumstances. This is a tight timeframe and may extend to one year. Plan to start implementation within one year to maintain interest and build momentum.

Community readiness. This initiative is community-driven. Leaders, citizens and organizations decide on priorities, build the strategy and implement actions. Implementation is collaborative. It is done in partnership with other organizations and with support from government but not necessarily directed by these leaders. Community members are the designers, developers, decision-makers and animators of the strategy.

Hosting a retreat to start the initiative helps leaders gain an understanding of the overall process and to build relationships. Consider a half-day to two-day retreat to start the process.

“If you want

creative workers,

give them enough

time to play.”

-John Cleese

33

Each step is described in more detail and includes:

Main activities

The main activities outline key actions in each step. The steps do not necessarily unfold in the same order each time. They are dependant on the group at the table and the community situation. The group may bounce from one step to another. It may be important for the community to jump to action and then work back to developing a vision and outcomes. Or they may choose to start with a celebration then decide on priorities and step back to look at existing resources and research. In an ideal world the process follows the order of these steps. The reality is it may not. Trust the process. Communities will realize the value of all steps in order to progress.

Questions to ask

Note: The questions suggested in this section are not a comprehensive list. Please refer to “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009) for a more comprehensive discussion on questioning techniques and questions to ask.

These questions are a sample that can be used to investigate, discover, encourage and probe community members. Outside the box questions are also included to encourage innovative thinking, pushing beyond conventional patterns. A question to ask prior to embarking on building an Active Community Strategy is:

What is the community‟s capacity? Consider time, will, motivation and resources to build an Active Community Strategy.

Note: This guide is not meant to teach facilitation skills or techniques. There are many techniques outlined in “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009).

Ideas

A brief list of activities and ideas are suggested to stimulate group dialogue. Refer to, “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009) for a comprehensive discussion and tools.

TIP! Remain flexible and trust the process. Reassure the group that ups and downs are normal!

TIP! Focus on strengths and solutions, and remain positive. If you as a facilitator can see possibility and opportunity, others will be more inclined to see them too.

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Re

ad

y, S

et,

Go

, C

ele

bra

te!

1. Ready…

Ignite and invite others to participate

Share strengths and successes

Research your community

Define priorities

Ignite and invite others to participate

Give people a reason to get involved. Host an event and celebrate community success.

Every community is distinct. Each has unique features, different populations, priorities and environments. All have champions who understand their community. These leaders are the driving force for community action.

“You can

discover more

about a person in

an hour of play

than in a year of

conversation.”

-Plato

35

Main activities

Set up a small working group to get started

Ask five to eight other community members from different sectors to help coordinate and facilitate the process. Discuss what an active community might look like and the opportunities there might be. Start with people you think may have a vested interest.

Bring people together from multiple sectors

Cross-sectoral involvement will offer a variety

of priorities, skills, knowledge and abilities. Build trust amongst groups who may not have worked together, focus on relationship building, understanding similarities and differences. Involve Recreation, Education and Health sectors together with a wide spectrum of industry, business and interest groups as well as political leaders and municipal departments. Step out of your usual circle and invite partners and leaders who you haven‟t worked with before. „Who‟ you want to impact should be sitting at the table from the start. Be sure to include media

partners!

“If you always

do what you’ve

always done,

you’ll always

get what

you’ve always

got.”

36

Include people with a variety of skills

Some people get excited about taking action quickly and others prefer longer term planning. ACE Communities found that it was important to focus on three paths: community leadership, quick success projects, and long term quality of life plans (see Three Paths of the ACE Journey document in the Tools section). Involve people with diverse skills in organizing, strategic thinking, creativity, collaboration and innovation. This will build a strong, sustainable effort.

Host a community event, coffee house or a number of small gatherings

The purpose of hosting an event in your

community is to get people excited about the notion of an active community. People who attend may not normally bump into each other and should not be limited to those in positions of power. Be sure to host the event(s) at a place where people feel comfortable and equal. Introduce the idea of an Active Community Strategy. Provide an opportunity to discuss what an active community looks like. Ask how people think they can be involved and give examples. Share community successes and strengths, look for opportunities, and begin identifying

existing resources.

Have a plan for the next step

When you get people involved, keep them involved. Schedule the next session ahead of time so that participants know when you‟ll meet again. Adjust the next steps based on group feedback. Collect email addresses to stay in touch.

Capture learnings and gather data from the start

You may not think you‟re ready to start

collecting information at this point,

however, it is never too early to start.

Take notes at the session, record who

you‟ve talked with and who attends. Ask reflective questions and record people‟s

comments. Recording information will help

to monitor and evaluate progress.

TIP! The steering/ working group needs to decide the best way to engage community.

TIP!

The ignite event may not include everyone from the community and that‟s okay, whoever shows up are the right people.

37

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose of bringing people together clear?

What do we want to accomplish?

People: Who

Who are local champions and influential leaders that are interested in building an active community?

Have we considered people from a variety of sectors, age categories, socio-economic standings, and genders?

How can we involve informal leaders in our community?

Who are we trying to impact?

Do we have a range of age groups involved?

How can we advocate support from local government?

How can we ensure that all (energizers, organizers, researchers and nurturers) find meaning in this process?

How can we make people feel welcome?

Process: How, Where, When

What will get people excited to take part?

How do we make it worthwhile for others to commit time to this?

What kind of food will we provide?

How are we sharing our gifts? (Are there others who could provide expertise?)

What can we do to learn about each other and our community?

Is there an existing event we can piggyback with?

What time/day is best for people in our community?

Do we need to provide transportation, childcare, etc. to increase accessibility?

Where will people feel welcome (location)?

What will we do to welcome everyone?

How will we get people actively involved?

How can our group connect and share our strengths?

How will we ask people to introduce themselves?

Do we have nametags (can these be used in an interactive way)?

Learning & Action: What

How are we supporting growth? For example: Growth of leadership skills, community connectedness, understanding other points of view.

What education might be needed?

Do we understand the concept of community building, shared leadership, empowerment, comprehensive strategy, sustainability, community engagement? How will we learn?

What information needs to be shared?

What opportunities might there be?

How can we harness the inspiration of this event?

How will we know what others want to commit to?

What information will we collect to evaluate progress?

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Outside the box

How can we look at this from another perspective? Use your imagination…

If I was a Super Hero what super powers would I use to engage others?

What if … we laid this out as a Do-It-Yourself project? Do we have a general contractor, plumbers, electricians, cabinet-makers and designers? Do we know how to coordinate a big renovation or build? Could it look like a traditional barn-raising?

Think about the shampoo commercial that gets everyone to „tell two friends‟ and they‟ll tell two friends, and so on and so on…Are there other pieces of pop culture that inspire creative ideas?

How are we learning to see the invisible, and the possible?

Communication:

What is the message we want to share with others?

How can we publicize and invite others to our event?

How will our group continue to provide opportunities for all groups to interact?

How will our group stay connected and share?

How will our group communicate what‟s happening with others in the community?

Ideas

Host a Community Building Workshop (contact ARPA for information).

Send a letter to leaders inviting them to take part.

Host a Conversation Café or a community celebration.

Present at a council meeting to gain support.

Hand deliver personal invitations. RSVP can help for planning.

Host a social event together with a meeting, a BBQ or gym night.

Ask young artists to draw what they see happening at the event, invite local musicians to provide music, a women‟s group to provide appetizers, a service club to set up a tent outside, a local grocer to donate drinks.

Set up a trade show and include a community information session.

Bring in a speaker.

Ask people to pay to attend, hold a dance competition, ask a seniors group to put together a community photo album, host an intergenerational event or hold a community walking tour then meet for coffee.

Have the mayor invite key leaders.

Give presentations to local organizations and service clubs about the Active Community Strategy and invite them to the community event.

Hand out commitment cards at the end of the event asking how people want to stay involved, what they have to offer and ask for their contact information so you can stay in touch and track involvement.

39

Share strengths and successes

Start with the glass half full so people see opportunity and build enthusiasm.

Main activities

Start with strengths

There are many ways for community to share

strengths and successes. Work from an assets-based place to build on the strengths. At the community ignite event or a follow-up event engage citizens to focus on what‟s worked in your community. What places, activities, organizations and resources do community members see as assets and what gifts do they bring to the table? What can they contribute to build an active community? A wide range of input from community will uncover the perceptions of community members about your community‟s assets. Ensure that there is involvement from a wide

range of age groups, sectors and socio-

economic groups.

Capture the information and share it

Take notes of the session and share it back with the participants and the community at large. Town or City council may be interested in hearing about what community members consider to be the assets. Invite media to the session so they can share it back through their channels.

TIP!

From the assets shared look for opportunities to build on and gaps that appear.

40

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose of intentionally focusing on strengths clear?


People: Who

What assumptions are we making about other people, organizations, leaders, in the community?

How can we build trust across our community?

What needs to happen in order for us to see the value in all sectors in our community?


Where are accessibility issues that we can address?

How can we bring people together to share strengths?

What format will be best for citizens to realize the wealth of our community?

When will we meet next?


How are we supporting growth?

What are the successes and strengths in our community?

What is our community known for?

What are we exceptional at as a community?

What challenges have we overcome and how did we do that?


What do I have to offer?

How will we use this information?

Communication:



What can our group do to communicate what‟s happening with those who are not yet involved?

41

Ideas

When arriving at the ignite event, ask people to write down or draw community assets on a large banner. Turn it into a wordle (www.wordle.com) and send it out after the session. (See Active Community Strategy “Wordle” on page 5)

Post a large map of the community and ask people to write community assets and successes on sticky notes then put them on the map. Ask the group to reflect on what they see and where opportunities may lie. Take pictures of the „assets map‟ and use them for future media.

Start a celebration wall in Town Hall.

Send a survey prior to the ignite event asking people about community successes, strengths, workplace assets, and share the results at the event.

Use the ACE Scanning Tool from, “A Toolkit for Community Leaders” (Herchmer, 2009) to identify community opportunities and strengths.

Outside the box

How can we see challenges as areas for positive growth in our community?

What are the perceptions of underserved populations in our community?

What image does our community portray to the rest of the world?

What if … we opened all our windows and let the wind blow through, the sunshine in and the wasps to buzz inside? How would this stimulate fresh perspective?

Parents pull out your children‟s toys! Use a set of building blocks to build a prototype that showcases our community strengths. What does it look like?

How are we learning to use our imaginations?

42

Research your community

Scan your community and include existing plans from other sectors.

Communities have a wealth of knowledge. As citizens you are the experts on your community. You understand how your community works, who‟s influential and what is relevant. Identify potential opportunities and challenges.

Communities and organizations usually have all kinds of planning documents. Identify existing plans so that you do not reinvent the wheel. Look at the main vision, goals and strategies (usually presented in executive summaries) to get a sense of common themes across sectors. Keep in mind this is only a surface view. If you want to dig deeper in certain areas once you have decided on priorities you can. Build on local resources and plans, learn about others and make connections.

Main activities

Develop a snapshot of your community using existing information

Build a picture of your community and identify possible areas to focus your Active Community Strategy on. Use existing strategies, visions, priorities and goals from a variety of organizations. Gather statistics and demographics from health, recreation and other sectors. Use the Active Community Strategy Snapshot Template (in Tools Section) as a guide.

The Snapshot Template includes the following categories:

Existing resources, plans, supports and initiatives in each of the 9 categories.

Key elements in existing plans related to an active community.

Ideas and opportunities to grow.

Challenges to build on (barriers).

Other factors to consider (i.e. economic, technology, political, social, environmental).

Gather relevant community information and plans

Find existing plans such as: Municipal Sustainability Plans (MSP), recreation plans, multi-use trail plans, transportation or design plans, population studies and facility inventories. Ask the Chamber of Commerce, School Board, Primary Care Networks, Family and Child Support Services (FCSS), the police department and social services for supportive policies and/or plans they may have.

Familiarize yourself with provincial initiatives like the provincial Active Alberta Policy (2011), the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) Healthy Alberta Communities Policy (2010) and the National Active Canada 20/20 Strategy (see the Policy Linkages document in the Tools section). Link them with your priorities to build support. Utilize existing recreation, active living, sport trends and research to ground your strategy (see Tools section for websites and tools).

43

Ask community members and organizations to share their visions, goals and strategies in person at a community session. Build awareness of the existing information. Confirm, modify or revise what you want your community to look like. This can be done in a formal or informal way. It is meant to honour the work that has been done in your community and to use it to inform your group as you move ahead.

Summarize your research

This can be done in a variety of ways. One person can pull the information together and share it in a template such as the Snapshot template in the Tools section. Then community members can use it to look for opportunities and develop priorities. Community members may want to cluster the information into main categories that fall under the core areas in the Active Community Strategy model and make sense of it from there. Smaller groups may want to identify the main themes that they hear, discuss what those themes mean and determine what success looks like.

The importance in summarizing the information is to build on what‟s already been done. This does not have to take a long time once you have gathered all the information. Time will be spent on engaging community members to share and gather existing plans and to make sense of it.

Identify common themes and categories

There will likely be some overlap of vision statements, general themes to focus on and potential opportunities. Filtering this information into a manageable and agreed upon grouping will give the communities a place to start identifying priorities. The community should either react to an initial clustering or cluster the ideas themselves so that they are make sense of the research and data collected.

TIP!

This step may seem overwhelming to some and they may get stalled. It is not an in-depth research exercise. Help the group to keep moving.

44

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose of compiling existing strategies and plans clear?

What do we want to accomplish with gathering and analyzing this information?

People: Who

Much of this work can be done behind the scenes, who likes researching, analyzing information?

Who might be interested in gathering the information?

Are there any educational institutions that may help with this?

Who has access and whom do we need to contact to get relevant information?

How can we involve a range of community members in this process?


How will we access existing information, plans, research?

Where can we get stats or research on trends?

How will we record and share this with the community?

What existing plans and policies do community members, politicians, decision makers respect and base action on?




What information do we want to gather?

What will be most useful?

What common patterns can we identify?

What, if anything may be missing?

Are all of the core areas of an Active Community Strategy represented?

To what extent is there agreement?

Are there any pieces that seem unique, outliers in the mix?

How do these fit together?

What strengths, unique characteristics and opportunities can you identify to build on?

What barriers and challenges emerge that the community might want to address?

How will we use the information that we‟ve learned to celebrate?

Communication:



How will our group communicate what‟s happening with our community?

45

Outside the box

If we turn our challenges into strengths what would

they look like?

How can we gather information „on the ground‟

from community members?

What if …we all wore crazy glasses; monocles, rose-coloured, mirrored, Elton John style with feathers and diamonds, too dark to see through, while we searched for, reviewed and analysed the information. How would this impact our ability to research our community?

If I were in a wheelchair would I change my approach

to researching our community?

How can our spiritual and faith-based resources

influence what type of questions we ask when researching?

What music can we listen to when analysing our research?

How are we learning to gage the temperature of our

community?

Ideas

Have key organizations and the municipality gather and summarize key points from the plans they feel are most relevant.

Use an existing vision statement if it reflects what community members are comfortable with.

If there are educational institutions in your community see if this type of work could be done as a class or individual project.

Do some quick interviews at the grocery stores in the community to find out about perceptions in the community and to inform people of what you‟re up to.

Further research may be needed in your community. This may be one of the areas that you identify as a priority in your Active Community Strategy so if you feel you don‟t have enough information, don‟t let it stop you from moving forward, identify it as an opportunity to focus on.

46

Define priorities

Discuss priorities and together decide what the common community priorities are. Priorities are big areas of focus such as Training and Education or Advocacy. These big categories will be narrowed down into bite-sized pieces once the community starts developing the plan. Often they are bigger than the resources at hand and may seem too big to include or address.

Main activities

Together determine the top 3 to 5 community priorities

Consider the community strengths that you identified earlier in the process. Analyse how they connect to the core areas in the Active Community Strategy model. Then as a community agree on what‟s most important. Prioritize areas of focus and decide on possible directions. Discuss resources, potential funding sources that can be leveraged and opportunities. Your community may agree on more than 5 priorities. The more priorities you have the more complex it is to move forward.

Keep in mind that priority areas are not solutions. For example, building a multiplex is a solution to community facilities and gathering spaces. At this point determine what the big priorities are and solutions will be generated as you proceed.

Link existing policies and plans with Active Community Strategy priorities

Existing plans and policies may reflect priorities that the group agrees on as their priorities. Intentionally make the connections in order to gain support from other groups, municipal governance and local leaders. This may lead you to partner with others you haven‟t engaged yet.

Develop a way to capture your learnings from the start

We often reflect on what we are learning at the very end of an initiative. It is difficult to change course after the fact. Start taking time to discuss leadership, process and outcome learnings with the working group and the larger community from the start. For more on capturing learnings see the „Celebrate‟ step in Section 3.

TIP!

Involve people who are not active, those with sedentary lifestyles because they are the ones who will most benefit.

47

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is our purpose clear in determining priorities?


What Core Areas of an Active Community Strategy do our priorities reflect? Are we missing any?

Will these priorities support getting more people, more active, more often?

People: Who

What groups are we missing?

Are the people at the table ones who will share with others?

Who do we need to encourage to participate?


Based on what we have shared and what we as a community value, what is the most important?

What priority areas are we as a community prepared to act on?

What areas do we think are too BIG, too scary, too difficult? What does that tell us?

Where could we use outside leadership or build collaborative partnerships?

What are we interested in doing that is reflected in the existing plans and policies?

Are there opportunities to develop or implement policy and advocacy?

Do we have visionary leadership? Where?

How are we using the strengths and research from previous steps to inform us going forward?

How do these connect with existing organizational, town/city, business priorities?

How can we build consensus around community priorities?

What can others bring to the table in terms of priority setting?

Are there common themes that run across the information we‟ve gathered?

How will community members drive these priorities forward?



What easy to achieve opportunities might there be to take action?

What will success look like now, in 1 year, 5 years?

What are our top 3 – 5 priorities?

What are we learning about each other, about community, about leadership?

Communication:



How will our group communicate what‟s happening and invite others to participate?

48

Outside the box

How else can we cluster the themes? Jump into a box, literally, and try to think of other ways to present priorities, then jump out of the box and do the same thing. Research shows that we‟re more creative when we‟re outside the box.

Are there priorities that didn‟t make the cut but

still are important?

Why not list just one priority or how about ten? How could we work with that?

How can we look at this from another perspective?

If we were a rock band or an orchestra, would these priorities provide the depth of sounds to create a classic rock hit or symphony?

What if … all of the people who made less than

$20,00 per year in our community looked at these

priorities, would they care?

What if all the people in our community who are

inactive were asked to be involved in one or more of

these areas, how successful would we be?

Like mental health issues, possibilities can be hidden

from the visible eye, what are those connections that are

hiding?

How are we learning to hear the silence, what‟s missing?

Ideas

Use different techniques to get community members to prioritize their top areas. For example give everyone three sticky dots and have them post their dots on their top three. Or have them “put their money where their mouth is” by giving everyone an imaginary $100 to spend (by writing the amount of money beside their priorities). Look at the results and discuss what it means.

TIP!

High Level continuously went to council meetings to inform the mayor and council of their pro-gress. This kept council informed, citizens and media as well.

49


High Level, Camrose, Irricana and

Lethbridge, Alberta were involved in the

first group of ACE Communities and all

are continuing their journey. They

understand community building and have

developed solid inter-sectoral

relationships. Recreation and Health

partners in each community were involved

in the Active Community Strategy pilot

initiative and supported by their

Town/City Councils. Each community

works with a number of other sector

partners and community members at

large. The soil is rich, ground has been

tilled and healthy seeds planted. These

community gardens are sprouting action

and growing community health through

active recreation/physical activity.

Tools:

In Section 4 Three Paths of the ACE

Journey

Questions for Each Core Area of the Model

Active Community Strategy Snapshot Template

Policy Linkages Document

Others

ACE Leadership Competencies (found in “A Toolkit for Community Leaders”)

ACE Scanning Tool (found in “A Toolkit for Community Leaders”)

Examples and tools for step 1:

High Level began researching by brainstorming all the reference material, barriers, other initiatives and ideas for each of the Active Community Strategy core areas as seen in their web picture (on next page).

50

High Level’s Brainstorming Web.

51

Re

ad

y, S

et,

Go

, C

ele

bra

te!

2. Set…

Engage others who need to be involved

Create a vision, values and principles

Describe your purpose

Engage others who need to be involved

Once community priorities have been identified involve people affected by the priorities and those who can add resources and expertise. Interest in the Active Community Strategy may be growing from other sectors. Welcome those who have not yet been a part of the process.

“Life needs

creativity to thrive

and the creative

process needs

acknowledged space

to happen.”

-Talia Shafir

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Main activities

Determine who else needs to be involved

As a community once you‟ve agreed on what‟s most important ask, “Who else should be involved?” It may be an organization who can provide support or individuals who will be impacted. Continue to expand the reach by asking others to be involved.

Change your approach if necessary

Have a look at who is not coming out and why that may be. There may be barriers holding them back. The meeting time or location may not fit with their schedule. They may not know anyone else involved. They may not feel welcome or accepted because of the people involved. Talk with people you‟d like to include and ask them why they are not involved. Find out what would bring them out. Assumptions sometimes cloud our perceptions so question your assumptions. Ask people directly what needs to be done differently and what it would take for them to be involved in the process.

Engage others by inviting them to be involved

If you don‟t ask, people may not think they are invited. A personal invitation is a welcoming feeling. If you find that key people are hesitant to get involved ask them to bring a friend or colleague, it is often easier to participate if you know someone else in the room.

TIP!

It may be that you have a good variety of people at the table, and it may be a small group. Remember, whoever shows up are the right people, you may not need anyone else.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Why are we engaging others to get involved?

What do we want to accomplish by bringing others into the mix at this point?

What existing work are groups or individuals already doing that others might want to be involved in to accomplish their mandates?

People: Who

Who else needs to sit at the table based on the priorities we‟ve identified?

Are the people we want to impact at the table?

Why are certain people not engaged?

What will it take to get them involved?

Who do we need to be successful?


How can we engage those we‟ve identified?

Where can we find those who aren‟t involved but that we‟d like to have included?

Who works with them, knows them, has influence with them, has built strong relationships and trust with the people we need at the table?

How or what do we need to change in order to engage others?

What can we change to accommodate others?



What opportunities might there be for other leaders to initiate action?

What are we willing to re-think or re-do, change, and what can we learn from that?

What do we need to be successful?

What have we learned through the process?

Are we using what we‟ve learned to move forward?

Communication:


What will we do to stay connected and share?

How will our group communicate what‟s happening with the community?

How will we resolve issues and come to decisions?

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Outside the box

If I step outside of my comfort zone, what would I be doing?

(e.g. facilitating a session, cold calling my neighbours,

keeping silent and listening to others)

What do we need to do to shift our actions to meet some

of our words?

What words do we need to celebrate or change? Language is powerful!


What if… an eagle, an astronaut and an ant were watching this process unfold like a movie; What would they see, Who‟d be most interested and Why would it matter to them? Most of all would any of them want to join in? Ask these same questions of community members.

As a business owner or a funder, why would I want to sit

at the table or play in the park with the Active Community

Strategy group?

Are we learning to see the white spaces, how do these

spaces enhance our progress?

Ideas

Ask others how they engage people and use a different strategy than you used at first. It could be 100 cups of coffee (with different people or with the same person) that will build trust and interest.

TIP!

We often provide service rather than encourage leadership. As you facilitate the process check that community members are leading the way. Ask them what might be helpful to support their leadership.

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Create vision, values and principles

Main activities

Together set out a vision, values and principles to guide your actions

Your vision does not have to be new. It could be one that your community already has. Base your vision on common community values. It is important to consider and integrate all core areas of an Active Community Strategy when constructing your vision. A comprehensive approach will bridge the grassroots and the grass tops.

Link existing policies and plan visions with your Active Community Strategy vision

Use the information you gathered when researching your community earlier to link your Active Community Strategy vision with existing policies and plans. Include local plans together with provincial (Active Alberta Policy website in Tools section) and national (Active Canada 20/20 website in Tools section) policies to expand your vision.

Create a visual representation

Use the policy linkages document in the Tools section to record and align your vision with others. This document can be used to generate awareness and support, to validate and legitimize your direction. When you develop goals and outcomes record those in this document as well.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose of a visioning exercise clear?


Has the community ever done a visioning exercise? If so how recently?

How can we find out if citizens think this is a valuable exercise?

People: Who

How can we bring visionary leaders and practical „get it done‟ people together in a meaningful way?

What do we need to do to build respect around the different leadership styles that community members have?


How much time do we want to spend on visioning?

What can we do to narrow the focus on an active community or do we have to?




What existing vision/values and principles could be used rather than creating new?

What are the common features of existing community information that we could build on?

Are there features missing that could be added?

What is the common vision that we are excited about?

Communication:




What will our group do to build trust among each other?

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Outside the box

How can we use the creative arts to vision with

community members?

What creative resources do we have that can support our way forward?


If I were a 10 year-old boy what would a cool visioning session look like?

If I were a 6 year-old girl how might I go about inviting people to see my vision of an active community?

What‟s our style? If our Strategy is based on our style, would we be a designer bathroom with glitz

and glam, a country-style claw-foot bathtub, or a pond

out back?

How are we learning to envision the invisible?

Ideas

Break the group into small groups of 5-8 people and have them draw their idea of an active community on flip chart paper, then share it with the entire group. Using the same format, give groups building blocks and other props and ask them to create their ideal „Active Community.‟ Then have each group explain it to the entire group. Take pictures to share with others in the community.

TIP!

Visioning can take some time and can be very useful IF the community thinks it is valuable. Monitor and ask the group how they want to spend their time. Recently there has been a lot of community planning in rural Alberta. If the community is tired of planning, it may be more beneficial not to go through it again, but to build on what they‟ve already done and move right to an action plan

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Describe your purpose

Main activities

When creating your vision, think about why you are spending time on building an active community strategy. Create a purpose that you and all community members can describe in 30 seconds or less. The purpose explains why the strategy is important and relevant in your community. It should be unique to your community.

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose crystal clear?


What do we want to really do and affect, change, or strengthen in our community?

People: Who

Are the people we are trying to impact sitting at the table, making decisions?

How are we continuing to build relationships with others?

Are we really collaborating with others, or focused on our own agendas?

How can we act more collaboratively?

Who is brilliant at capturing ideas in one statement?

Who could we engage that could help to design our purpose in something other than words?


Do we have a common purpose that we can state in 30 seconds or less?

How can we as a group design our purpose statement?




How can we make this statement something that will excite others to adopt it?

Do we want it to be our „go to line‟? (everyone in the community has this purpose front of mind)

Can we use this to brand our community? Do we want to?

Do we have a statement that we can use or adjust?

Communication:




What will we do to create an open atmosphere for honest discussion?

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Outside the box

Could we design a logo that depicts our purpose

rather than a statement?

How can we involve the youth, musicians, older

adults and cultural communities in describing our

purpose?

As an older adult does this purpose resonate with

me?


Can we tweet our purpose, using only 140 characters?

What if …we were to colour code our purpose, what would that look like?

Drawing on inspiration from nature, where would our purpose be positioned on a tree, at it‟s roots, the trunk, the branches or leaves? What about a spider

web?

How are we learning to see the invisible, what‟s shining

in the background?

Ideas

Create a radio jingle or a viral video that describes your purpose. Ask youth to be involved. For example High Level asked an afterschool youth art club to join the community planning meetings and draw what they heard. The students became participants in the conversation and their artwork was used on the cover of their written Strategy.

TIP! Look for opportunities in unusual places. Challenge the group to create a purpose that stretches far beyond their comfort zone.

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Tools:

In Section 4 Active Community Strategy Planning Template

Includes:

Links between Active Community Strategy vision with local, provincial and national policies and strategies

Active Community Strategy priorities, goals and desired outcomes

Documents short, mid and long term actions

Identifies who will take action in what areas

Determines appropriate indicators for success

Presents reasonable actions to take on community priorities agreed on

Policy Linkages in the Tools section

This chart includes the main visions, goals and strategies of three key national and provincial policies. Use this information to link local Active Community Strategy vision, goals and outcomes with these policies to build support provincially and nationally.


One of Irricana’s priorities

was to develop a

sustainable approach for

the ongoing operations and

programming of their

portable flooring system in

the curling rink. They

partnered with the Ag

Society who own the

building, the Town for

human resources and the

user groups to develop and

coordinate the scheduling,

use policies and recreation

guide. Talk about engaging

those who need to be

involved!


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Re

ad

y, S

et,

Go

, C

ele

bra

te!

3. Go!

Identify outcomes

Develop strategies and action plans

Take action – implement

Identify goals and outcomes

Gather with community groups and citizens to devise goals and identify specific outcomes. The goals reflect what your community wants to achieve. Outcomes are specific statements of how you want your community to look, feel and be. For example, our community is connected through a multi-use trail system that is accessible to all citizens, in all seasons. This reflects the what, for who and when.

“Creativity can

solve almost any

problem. The

creative act, the

defeat of habit by

originality,

overcomes

everything.”

-George Lois

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Main activities

Get together

Meetings can get stale really fast and by this time your group has been engaged for four to six months. Some may be getting antsy to do something. Create working session(s) where lots gets accomplished in a short period of time. A short time commitment may be most appropriate. Ask your group what will work best for them. For example, Airdrie hosted 1 hour working sessions every 2 weeks. This was effective as people had busy schedules. A core group attended each meeting and new people joined along the way. Your community may decide to hold an intensive weekend session. Whatever you decide to do, have the group agree on how to proceed.

Determine goals and outcomes

The previous step of describing the purpose

will act as a focal point. Be sure that the purpose is clear to everyone and refer back to it often. Goals express what the community wants to achieve. They should be SMART (specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic and relevant and time-based). Link your goals to the research and priorities that the community agreed on in the earlier steps of the process. Linking your goals and outcomes with existing plans and policies will enable the Active Community Strategy and your group to gain support from various levels of government and organizations with similar

mandates.

Identifying outcomes and developing action plans work hand in hand. When your group discusses outcomes focus on what the end result will look like.

TIP! Keep the number of outcomes and goals manageable, 3 to 8. Address all areas in the Active Community Strategy model to ensure the comprehensive nature.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Is the purpose of developing goals and outcomes clear?


What do we want to look differently in our community?

People: Who

Who do we need to hear from?

Who will this impact beyond the general citizenry (educators, government officials and staff, business people, youth, etc.)?


Where can we meet that is accessible for all citizens?

What do we need to do to prepare ourselves, and others in order to agree on outcomes?

Can we integrate identifying outcomes with the previous step of describing our purpose?

Do our goals and outcomes reflect our purpose?



What opportunities might there be to involve or use other people‟s strengths?

After we agree on outcomes what will we need to prepare for the next step of developing strategies and action plans?

Are we using what we‟ve learned about the process to move forward?

What have we learned about each other, our community, leadership, a community development process?

Communication:



How will our group communicate what‟s happening with others in the community?

TIP! The group may choose to have goals or outcomes not both. A good question to pose is “What do you want your community to look like?” or “What do you want to be different as a result of this process?”

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Outside the box

Think of preparing for a meal. Consider the

preparation, grocery shopping, atmosphere

you want to create, candles and music, the

invitation list, the menu, the meal itself and a

follow up thank-you note. Have we considered

all of these when identifying goals and outcomes?


If I were an intelligence agent what would I do differently?

What if …we gave our outcomes the sniff test, would everyone find them pleasing? If not, how can we meld the aromas?

Stand up, take a break and walk away, go outside

and breathe deeply. Then ask, How will we reflect

the value of our unstructured, dynamic resources in

our community?

How are we learning to see the invisible, what‟s

standing out?

Ideas

Use back-casting as a method to determine outcomes.

Ask participants to draw or write the main features of their ideal active community (or use the information you gathered during the strengths and successes session and the notes from what people thought an active community was). Have participants post the pictures and words along a continuum of importance. Ask the group to decide which pictures or words best describe their desired outcomes. Then move on to the next phase of developing strategies and action plans.

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Develop strategies and action plans

Strategies and action plans lay out how you will achieve the outcomes that you have described. They also include indicators to show progress.

Other organizations may already be working on some of the goal areas. If so include that information to integrate the work that‟s being done. Include a communication strategy to keep community and leaders in the loop.

Main activities

Draft the Active Community Strategy

Use the Active Community Strategy Planning Template in the Tools section to record your strategies and action plans. Based on community goals and outcomes, determine the short, mid and long-term actions needed to reach your outcomes. Identify who will take the lead on each goal.

Develop an evaluation strategy for each of the goals

The Active Community Strategy Planning Template includes a section for indicators. These provide the basis for your evaluation strategy. Strategic evaluation will enable you to show success and monitor the progress of your actions. Create indicators to measure progress. The Active Alberta policy (link in the Tools section) includes indicators that may be useful when developing your indicators.

Analyze the ability and capacity of your community

Consider sustainability and leadership development. Often it‟s the same 10 volunteers who are involved in many different initiatives. Encourage others to get involved and provide opportunities for them to step forward so that you are not spread too thin.

Share the draft strategy, get feedback and revise

Ongoing communication is key. Continue to engage others in a variety of ways using different media. This is how your Active Community Strategy will continue to thrive, build support, interest and action. Ask for feedback and input from community members and council. Make modifications or revisions based on feedback. Invite others to be a part of the action.

Take action

Once you have your Active Community Strategy celebrate and take action! Understand that it is a living strategy and will likely change as time passes and the community evolves. A great excuse to bring people together in celebration is the completion of your Active Community Strategy. This can spark more interest and engage the action-oriented folks in your community.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Do we all understand why we need an action plan?


People: Who

Who is familiar with action planning that we can engage for support?

Is there expertise in our community in writing? Could they write up our Strategy?

How can we hold each other accountable for taking action?


Are we ready to get our hands dirty?

How can we share the strategy electronically and get input from people through the use of technology?

What can the local media do to support the spread of our Strategy?

What can we do to celebrate what we‟ve done?




What have we learned as leaders in the community?

What do we want to share about what we‟ve learned?

How can we use this opportunity to create further awareness and community engagement?

Communication:


What will our group do to stay connected and share?


What action can we take to share our strategy with others in the province?

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High Level identified ten priorities. They

decided to focus on one at a time and

started with communication. As they took

action on their communication strategy the

Town was working on an active transportation

plan, also one of the priorities on the Active

Community list. The Town asked to have an

Active Community Strategy group member on

their Active Transportation Committee. High

Level increased community engagement,

communication and collaboration as a result

of their Active Community Strategy

initiative.

Outside the box

If our strategy was a song what would it sound like,

rap, rock, country?


If we compare our action plan to mixing concrete how solid would it be?

What if …our community linked with a community overseas to support each other in becoming more active?

What risks would a legal team identify after reviewing the strategies and actions presented?

What‟s missing?

Ideas

Engage a visual artist facilitator to lead the strategic development process rather than having a linear, written document. A visual facilitator will capture your strategy with a large mural sized picture that can be used in many different ways.

Ask a local band create a theme song for your Active Community Strategy initiative.

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Take action

Implementation comes in many forms and is not limited to this stage in the process. You have already been taking action by building relationships, determining priorities and engaging others. Now with more focused goals and outcomes, it‟s time to get moving on your action plan and implement it!

Some may find it difficult to move from planning to taking action. Be assured that it is time. If you have engaged community members and have a group of people committed to the process and to building a healthy, active community, it‟s time to implement. Now is the time to re-engage those who love to do the work. They may have stepped back from the planning but be interested in getting involved at this point. Send the word out and realize your strategic direction.

Main activities

Call to action

Throughout the process there have been people involved from a range of places, ages, sectors and with diverse skills and expertise. Each has their area of interest and now is the time to activate the work done to date. Call those who may have stepped away from the planning process back into the mix and start moving. This may take the form of smaller working groups or larger community initiatives. Some of the planners may step back at this point.

Act creatively

It often takes creative action to make things happen. Embrace new and creative ways to take action, encourage others and to generate involvement. Engage community leaders who may be sitting on the sidelines to get involved. Young, old, active, not active, ask and do with an open mind. Community is the whole spice cabinet, try new flavours and create mouth-watering results.

Take action based on plans: Start something now!

Act now, community wants to see results so it is important to follow through with the action plans that you‟ve set out. Together with the group make it happen and hold each other to account.

TIP!

Believe in the

power of action

and be a part of it.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Have we tied our actions to reflect the overall purpose of our Strategy?


People: Who

Continue to ask who else should or could be included?

Have we dug into the corners of our community for people with other skills?

How are we engaging those who do not have a strong voice?

How can we engage people who drifted away from the Active Community Strategy process?


What do we need to do to make things happen?

Are there any challenges that we aren‟t addressing?

Where and when are we going to start?



What opportunities might there be to increase learning in our community?

Who will do what, when?

How will we show success?

What needs to be reviewed and renewed?

Change is inevitable, what‟s changed since we started this process?

Do we need to modify, get others involved?

Communication:




Who will we share our story with?

TIP! If you are a community leader walk the talk and take the lead, or follow other leaders in activating some part of your Strategy.

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Outside the box


If I didn‟t know anyone in the community, how could I get involved?

If I had a million dollars, what would I do with it to build our active community? And what would I need in order to support the Active Community Strategy?

Smile, maybe even laugh…when we look at our

Strategy what makes us smile and laugh?

How are we learning to enjoy the process and

each other?

Ideas

At this point your group will have many ideas on how to implement your strategy. Use the wealth of knowledge you bring to the table and look outside the community for other ideas.

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Tools:

In Section 4 Active Community Strategy Planning Template

Includes:

Linking Existing Policies and Plan Vision with Active Community Strategy Vision

Linking Existing Policies and plans with Active Community Strategy Priorities

Active Community Strategy Goals and Priorities

Desired Outcomes

Short, Mid and Long term Actions

Who will take action

Indicators (Active Alberta Policy has some suggestions)

Other Active Community Strategy Examples Contact leaders from:

High Level

Irricana

Lethbridge


Lethbridge leveraged the seed

funding they received from the

Active Community Strategy

initiative and received further

funding support from the City

to develop their online

communication tools. They

continue to lead the way in

connecting their community

through technology and

unstructured spaces. Check out

their Strategy to find out

more. They are getting more

people, more active, more often!


TIP!

Ongoing commitment and action speak louder than words.

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Go

, C

ele

bra

te!

4. Celebrate

Learning, celebrate and tell your story

Evaluation and learning is continuous. Take time throughout the process to reflect on what the group is learning and apply new knowledge as you go. Evaluate both the process and outcomes. Measure the return on investment (ROI). It may seem difficult, however, if you can equate your community‟s action with money it will attract potential funders and provide supporters concrete numbers to use for evaluation purposes. For example, calculate the number of volunteer hours that have been donated to your Active Community Strategy and convert that to a dollar amount for labour. Qualitative and quantitative outcomes are valuable. Assemble a Community Listening Group to hear what‟s being said about the initiative and to record how the process unfolds. Ask people what they‟ve learned and what they‟ve noticed about the community atmosphere. And of course, celebrate often and share your stories!

Learning

Throughout the process all those involved will have learned something. There may be increased awareness of working relationships, strengthened leadership, understanding community needs and desires, and many others. Take the time to share those learnings.

“Creativity is like

a muscle. You

either use it or

lose it.”

-Roger von Oech

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94% of Albertans agree that physical activity will keep them healthy.

Main activities

Reflect on what the community, businesses, organizations and individuals have learned

Formally and/or informally engage your group to look back and reflect on what you‟ve learned. It‟s an ongoing process that helps inform community as you proceed and motivates citizens to stay involved. The power of reflecting on what has been done and is being done can heighten interest and create awareness. People may think nothing has happened, however, through reflecting, evaluating and celebrating perceptions may shift.

TIP! Learning comes in many forms, look to stories, statistics, faces and families to find meaning in what you have done. Equate those learnings to dollar amounts.

74

Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

Why do we want to reflect on what we‟ve learned?


People: Who

What research and education resources can we partner with to show success?

Who will capture these?


How will we capture unexpected outcomes and learnings?

What measures will indicate success?

How can we integrate what we learned into a celebration?



What have we learned?

How will we use our learnings?

Are there research opportunities?


Communication:




What will we do to let others across the province know about what we learned?

Outside the box

If I were a new Sudanese immigrant with three children,

would I understand what we learned and the vision?

What if we could talk with the Prime Minister, what would we tell him about Active Community Strategy?

What if we could talk with the Dalai Lama, what words of wisdom would he have for us?

What other teachers can we learn from?

How are we learning?

Ideas

Have community members build a community banner with what they learned.

Ask a local artist or writer to paint or write some of the learnings, use these as „gifts‟ for the community.

Bring in an economic analyst and ask them how they could equate a return on investment.

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Celebrate

The importance of celebrating is often overlooked. It is not only a time to have fun but also to acknowledge accomplishments, re-energize, and take a step back to reflect on next actions. Taking a deep breath and enjoying each other‟s company leads to many positive outcomes. Celebrations shouldn‟t be relegated to the end, include them along the way.

Main activities

Plan celebrations

A group is needed to coordinate and plan celebrations. Your community may choose to have a dedicated celebrations committee from the start. This group could focus on the logistics as well as act as the voice of celebration. This group could remind the crew and nudge them to include celebrations at various times throughout the process. Another approach is to intentionally create celebrations groups as you travel along. This opens up the possibilities for a diversity of celebrations along the way.

Celebrate

Host, have fun and make it meaningful.

Reflect

After each celebration take time to reflect on the event itself, planning and anything that may have emerged as a result. These opportunities can be forgotten or overlooked so make time for debriefing after the event.

TIP! Celebrate throughout the process; when you accomplish something, when you feel a boost is needed, when community groups are pulling out into silos and when the community comes together.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

What is the purpose of the celebration?

What do we want to accomplish through celebrating?

How can we use the celebration to move into the next phase of our Active Community Strategy?

Where do we want to go next?

People: Who

Who needs to be involved in planning the celebration?

Who are the energizers in the community that can get others excited and engaged before and during the event?

Who are the organizers in the community with expertise in coordinating a celebration?

Who should be invited, the whole community or smaller groups?


How can we celebrate as a community in our own unique way?

Do we want many small celebrations along the way and/or one large community celebration?

What other community events can we piggyback with?


How are we supporting growth through celebration?

What opportunities might there be during the planning, hosting, clean-up, and post-event for purposeful engagement?

What went well?

What was tricky?

What would we do differently?

What opportunities are there for further collaboration?

Where do we want to go now?

Communication:

How will our group encourage others to provide opportunities for all groups to interact?



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What motivates you to try new activities? Albertans said:

Exercise

Fitness

Improved Health

Friends

Family

Children

Outside the box

How can we use technology as a tool for

celebration or a platform to celebrate?

What youth-led actions are we celebrating

and how do they want to celebrate?

How can we look at celebrating through a fresh lens?

What if … we focused our attention on one specific mood to create a celebration theme: positive, surprized, inspired, relaxed, proud, jovial, satisfied?

How are we celebrating the behind the scenes people

and actions, and those who have not yet been engaged?

Ideas

Host a community flash mob at a busy, central location in community.

Celebrate online with a live cast of a community video showcasing your active community or through a web platform where people can meet online to chat (i.e. host a Facebook party).

Ask the youth to organize a community celebration.

Plan a celebration for people in community who have never participated in the Active Community Strategy process.

Host a celebration week. Ask people to create their own celebrations during one week/weekend and have a forum to capture their activities (i.e. a roaming reporter).

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Tell your story

Knowledge Translation (KT) is a hot topic in the research field. In its simplest form it is defined as putting knowledge into action. KT focuses on sharing what you have learned in a way that your audience understands the message and can translate that information into action. Telling stories can help people translate what your community has learned into meaningful lessons for their communities. Stories are powerful tools to share experience, learn, gain understanding and acceptance. Storytelling can take many forms. Choose the approach that fits the audience you are sharing with.

Main activities

Tell your story often and in a variety of ways

Each individual and group has the ability to tell his or her story. It just may not be in the form of a traditional story. If you don‟t have the expertise to write find some one who writes. Preferably find someone local. If writing isn‟t your cup of tea tell your story in another way to spread the word about what‟s happening in your active community. Consider your audience, for example, if you want youth to hear your story share it on twitter, instagram or create a YouTube video. Better yet have youth create it.

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Questions to ask

Purpose: Why

What is the purpose of sharing our community story?


People: Who

Who do we want to share our story with?

Who can benefit from hearing our story?

Who are the storytellers in our community that we can encourage to take action?


How can we use community expertise to share our story?

What resources do we have locally that can help communicate our learnings?

How can we integrate storytelling into our celebrations?

Where and when will we share our story with others in the community, province?

What are some other forms that we can use to tell our story?


How are we supporting growth by telling our story?

What opportunities might there be for others to grow?

What skills can we build or draw on to help us tell our story, in our way?

Communication:

What languages should we translate our story in to broaden the audience?

How will our group provide opportunities for all groups to interact and weave the community story together?

How will our group communicate what‟s happening with the community, government, potential funders?

TIP! Some may feel too uncomfortable to tell their story publicly. Public speaking practice and training (Toast Masters anyone?) can start with facilitating a small community meeting, Encourage leaders to take those steps.

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Outside the box

How can we use our community story to create more

community and provincial dialogue?

If we wrote a children‟s book about our Active Community Strategy journey, who would be the main character(s), what would the moral of the story be?

If we were to tell our story through active play, how might that look?

What if …we created a community quilt that „told our story‟?

How are we learning to SCAMPER? Look up this

creative thinking tool online for other ways to expand

thinking around ideas and issues.

Ideas

Try one of these to tell your community story; Pecha Kucha, picture book, sculpture, website, workshop, song, presentation, press release, media splash, media event, traveling theatre production, movie.

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Some of High Level's story has

been shared through examples in

this guide. They presented their

journey on webinars, have taken

part in the second Active

Community Strategy retreat and

continue their tell their story as

it unfolds. One of the leaders

has been elected onto the

Alberta Recreation and Parks

Association Board, where he is

able to connect the value of local

community initiatives with

provincial organization and

policy. The journey continues…

Tools:

In Section 4 Active Community

Strategy Template

Active Community Strategy Story Template


SCAMPER – Bob Eberle developed this in the 1970‟s and can be found on many websites. One site that includes questions is www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCT_02.htm

The pilot communities developed different ways to share their Active Community journeys through case studies, presentations, videos and through webinars. Irricana put together a pictorial of their Journey (see below). Lethbridge created a video on YouTube, view it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkdANXzqzmA&feature=youtu.be

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCT_02.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkdANXzqzmA&feature=youtu.be

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Irricana’s Active Community Strategy Journey

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ecti

on

4

Tools

This section includes a variety of tools and resources that support building an Active Community Strategy. It does not include facilitation techniques and tools or community building resources. Those can be found in the “Toolkit for Community Leaders” referenced below.

The Active Community Strategy guide builds on the work of ACE Communities, which developed a comprehensive set of community building tools included in the Toolkit.

A Toolkit for Community Leaders. ARPA: Edmonton. Herchmer, B. (2009). Available at www.campusforcommunities.com

This section is organized into 5 areas:

ACE Communities Resources

Active Community Strategy Tools and Templates

Web Resources

Print Resources available through ARPA

Resources for Provincial Action

Another resource to note is an initial document focused on provincial process (See Appendix C). The intent is to document how provincial decision makers, i.e. government officials, provincial organization leaders, coalitions, and funders can take action and support Active Community Strategy development on a provincial scale. This continues to be a work in progress.

http://www.campusforcommunities.com/

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ACE Communities Resources

Planning Framework Using a Community Development Approach

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Three Paths of the ACE Journey

This visual is a quick look at the three paths that work together to support your action forward. All three are equally important. Leadership is central to engaging people who want to take action and to build local successes. Leadership is also central to building a long-term vision and plan that will help direct the community on its desired path. The visionaries and planners in your community will be drawn to this. Remember to keep feeding community leadership through professional development opportunities, training and skill development to ensure a sustainable approach.

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Active Community Strategy Tools and Templates

Includes:


Active Strategy Planning

A. Link your Active Community Strategy with Existing Policies

B. State Community Priorities C.Break Priorities into Goals D.Build Action Plan

Active Community Strategy Planning Template Policy Linkages Active Community Strategy Final Template Active Community Strategy Story Template

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The Active Community Strategy snapshot template is a tool for communities to use when looking at existing plans and policies. Record information from each plan or policy, then consider the connections to the Active Community Strategy core areas and record those together with any comments. With community members, identify the existing resources in your community for each of the core areas, identify opportunities to grow and challenges that you may want or see a need to build on.

Health statistics and demographic information are useful when building a snapshot of your community. Include information from regional and provincial health plans and studies, chronic disease statistics and health promotion data. Other local plans from organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce and school board will also broaden your understanding of the community as will information on the faith community.

Use this template to include relevant trend information as well. For example a few current trending areas include: lifestyle coaching, physical literacy, flexible packaging, informal, unstructured activities, shorter workshops, unstructured activity, short volunteer opportunities, seniors with support, outdoor interpretive programs, water wise, active community design, inclusion of health and wellness, consistent messaging and communication, recreation is essential, play is serious, build community integration, public/private partnerships, new technology, succession planning, risk management, facility lifecycle planning, advocacy, integrated services, multi purpose facilities, engaging community, business trends.

Research documents that may be helpful in building an evidence-based strategy can be found online through the Centre for Active Living, Benefits Hub (Alberta Recreation and Parks Association) Statistics Canada and Alberta Health Services all websites can be found earlier in this tools section.

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Community Snapshot

Vision, goals and focus areas from document

Comments and links with Active Community Strategy core areas

Existing Resources

Opportunities/Ideas to Grow

Challenges to build on

Document

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Active Community Strategy Planning


Outlined are the ABCD‟s of putting together your Active Community Strategy. Different formats may work better for your community. This format should be modified based on your community input and needs.

A. Link your Active Community Strategy with Existing Policies and Plans

For example:

Active Community Strategy (The vision that your community has for the Active Community Strategy)

Community CSP/MDP (Name of key community plan(s) that matter to your community)

Provincial/National Policy (i.e. Active Alberta: A Recreation, Active Living and Sport Policy)

Vision: (Your vision)

Vision: (Their vision) Vision: Albertans enjoy a high quality of life, improved health, strong communities and personal fulfillment through recreation, active living and sport.

B. State Community Priorities

Top Priorities to Address: (3-5 are optimal, there may be more)

For example:

1. Youth engagement and physical activity

2. Leadership training and education

3. Communication and marketing of opportunities and for networking/collaboration

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C. Break Priorities into Goals

For example:

Active Community Strategy Goal 1

For example:

Community CSP/MDP Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation - Active Alberta: A Recreation, Active Living and Sport Policy

Promote the opportunities to live a more active lifestyle for all residents

(Take information from plan that links with your Active Community Strategy goal.)

(Information that links with your Active Community Strategy goal from this plan.)

D. Build an Action Plan

Action planning format:

Goal 1 (Big Picture Goal that community has agreed on)

Priority (The Active Community Strategy Core Area(s) that this goal links with i.e. Messages to Share, Places to Go, Policy, etc.)

Outcome (What will this look like, what do you want to achieve?)

How Short- term

(Specific actions for the next 6 months) Mid-term

(Specific actions for the next 6 months to 1 year) Long-term

(Actions for 1 – 5 years out)

Who

(Identify who will take the lead on these activities)

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Indicators . (How you will know what progress is being made?) For example:

- Percentage of leaders in the recreation, active living and sport sector that are recruited and supported

- Best practices in land use and transportation planning related to active transportation are identified and shared

Goal 2

Priority

Outcome

How Short- term

Mid-term

Long-term

Who

Indicators

Goal 3

Priority

Outcome

How Short- term

Mid-term

Long-term

Who

Indicators

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The Active Community Strategy Planning Template

Community Active Community Strategy

Community CSP/MDP Provincial/National Policy

Vision: Vision: Vision:

Top Priorities to Address:

1.

2.

3.





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Goal 1

Priority

Outcome

How Short- term

Mid-term

Long-term

Who

Indicators

Goal 2

Priority

Outcome

How Short- term

Mid-term

Who

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Long-term

Indicators

Goal 3

Priority

Outcome

How Short- term

Mid-term

Long-term

Who

Indicators

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Policy Linkages


This chart includes valuable information for the sustainability of your strategy. Once your community has identified its priorities, determined goals and outcomes, refer to the policy(s) that are most relevant to your community. There may be others. Look for connections between your priorities and goals, and the outcomes or areas of focus in these plans. Using a similar format, include your Active Community Strategy vision, goals and strategies matched with those of the policy.

Aligning your goals and or outcomes with one or more of these policies can be useful to leverage support locally, provincially or nationally or to position your community as the leader or expert in one of the policy goal areas. The opportunities are endless.

Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation - Active Alberta: A Recreation, Active Living and Sport Policy, 2011-2021

Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) – Healthy Alberta Communities Convention Policy Paper, 2010

Active Canada 20/20: A Physical Activity Strategy & Change Agenda for Canada, May 2012

Vision: Albertans enjoy a high quality of life, improved health and wellness, strong communities, economic benefits and personal fulfillment, through recreation, active living and sport. Active Alberta will inspire Albertans to become more active every day, through sustainable, province-wide activities that generate awareness and motivate action through collaboration.

Municipal Government Act Purpose of a Municipality: -To provide good government. - To provide services, facilities or other things that, in the opinion of council, are necessary or desirable for all or a part of the municipality. - To develop and maintain safe and viable communities.

Goal: To increase the physical activity level of every person in Canada.

Outcomes: 1. Active Albertans: More Albertans are more active, more often. 2. Active Communities: Alberta communities are more active, creative, safe and inclusive. 3. Active Outdoors: Albertans are connected to nature and able to explore the outdoors. 4. Active Engagement: Albertans are

Focus on: 1. Transportation 2. Recreation 3. Parks 4. Land-use planning

Areas of Focus: 1. Policy Development, Change and Implementation 2. Targeted Information and Public Education 3. High Quality, accessible Programs and Services 4. Community Design

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engaged in activity and in their communities. 5. Active Coordinated System: All partners involved in providing recreation, active living and sport opportunities to Albertans work together in a coordinated system. 6. Active Pursuit of Excellence: Albertans have opportunities to achieve athletic excellence.

Foundations for Change: 1. Evidence and Knowledge Exchange 2. Strategic Investments 3. Mobilization

Outcome 1. Active Albertans: More Albertans are more active, more often.

Social Infrastructure principles: 1. Federal and Provincial governments have primary responsibility to fund and support social infrastructure. 2. Municipal Government have a role in social infrastructure. 3. Engagement, cooperation and flexibility to ensure local priorities are met are essential in meeting social infrastructure needs. 4. Municipalities in the context of available resources and Council approval may choose to deliver social infrastructure components. 5. Access to medical care and adequate police, fire, and ambulance services are important components of the goal of social infrastructure to create and maintain safe and viable communities. (AUMA 2010 Policy Statement on Building Communities)

Area of Focus 1. Policy Development, Change and Implementation Introduce, change, coordinate and implement policies and/or legislation at all levels of government, voluntary and private sectors, to stimulate increases in physical activity & reduce barriers.

Strategic Priorities

Working with partners, encourage and improve opportunities for children and families to engage in high quality, unstructured, and creative play.

Resolutions that call for action on healthy communities.

Actions: Create a Canadian Physical Activity Policy similar in reach and scope to the Canadian Sport Policy. The Canadian Physical activity Policy should explicitly target increased physical activity and reduced sedentary behaviours. The Physical Activity Policy would be developed in consultation with Federal/Provincial/Territorial/Municipal departments concerned with education,

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transportation, human resources, infrastructure, environments, business, heritage and tourism, and other non-governmental stakeholders. A special Task Force or other mechanism for creation of the Policy should be considered.

Working with partners, increase levels of physical activity of Albertans of all ages and abilities across their lifespan and in diverse settings (e.g. homes, schools, workplaces) by sharing knowledge, supporting physical literacy and encouraging participation opportunities.

Funding Major Community Facilities: …Resolved that the AUMA urge the Government of Alberta to continue to fund the Major Community Facilities Program on an ongoing basis to allow for the proper planning to occur to see these projects completed for the benefit of Albertans.

Employers in Canada should develop and/or strengthen results-oriented policies that support infrastructure and programs for employees to add physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviours in their daily lives, including active transportation to and from work. Health, and Safety policies should address physical activity and sedentary behaviors. Employers and employees should be supported with tax incentives and policies designed to increase physical activity and decrease sedentary behaviours.

Through effective communication, including social marketing, increase awareness among all Albertans about how and where they can be active.

Urban Parks: …Resolved that the AUMA encourage the Government of Alberta to include Urban and Regional Countryside Parks as an important part of the parks network in Alberta, and to work with AUMA to ensure that Urban and Regional Countryside Parks are further developed, maintained, enhanced and promoted in Alberta. …Resolved that the Government of Alberta commit to establishing a new Urban and Countryside Parks Program that would support municipalities in parks planning, parkland acquisition, parks development, conservation, operations and promotions.

Governments should intentionally address people with the greatest need and access issues by targeting policies to eliminate disparities in participation levels.

Support the integration of the Canadian Sport for Life model into the education,

AUMA requested representation on the Parks Advisory Council outlined in the Government of

Government departments responsible for community planning, design and

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recreation, active living and sport development systems.

Alberta‟s 2009 Plan for Parks. transportation (federal, provincial/territorial, municipal, local) should establish and implement policies to prioritize active transportation.

Work with partners to develop innovative, accessible after school programs that link community recreation programs and services to schools and community facilities.

Trails: …Resolved that the AUMA urge the Government (Alberta Transportation) to adopt as part of its design standards and policies, facilitation of and providing for alternative modes of transportation such as cycling, running, walking and to consider the construction of trail systems as part of the building or rebuilding of roads & highways.

School boards across Canada should adopt and implement policies in all schools to ensure the delivery of quality, daily physical education including delivery by physical education specialists and support for the development of physical literacy for all children.

Encourage school communities to adopt a comprehensive school health approach to promote healthy, active living.

Sustainable Land-use planning: …Resolved that AUMA request the Government develop a policy and regulatory framework which factors cumulative economic, social, environmental and health impacts of multiple developments in the approval process.

School policies should also ensure opportunities for daily physical activity, school sport, intramurals, spontaneous play active transportation and decreased sedentary behaviours.

Outcome 2. Active Communities: Alberta communities are more active, creative, safe and inclusive.

…Resolved that AUMA adopt the 2007 President‟s Summit Land Use Planning Paper, which includes the following recommendations to the Government.

Implementation of the Canadian Sport Policy should bring priority to increasing physical activity levels and decreasing sedentary time as part of its sport participation goal.

Strategic Priorities

Encourage collaborative planning for facilities and services.

1. Establish a new planning process strategy outlined in the AUMA Sustainable Land Use Planning Paper (2007).

Community organizations from all sectors, work together to develop policies that identify community assets for physical activities (facilities, corridors, green spaces and active spaces) and maximize use of those assets through shared use plans and agreements.

Work with partners to identify and share approaches in communities that capitalize on ethnic diversity, urban and rural distinctiveness, and mobilize industry to develop active communities.

2. Establish a provincial land use planning body to develop and implement province-wide planning goals.

Multi sector opportunities should be investigated to collaborate with the insurance industry to reduce real and perceived barriers to physical activity associated with liability issues.

● Encourage local governments to create 3. Development of enabling provincial legislation 2. Targeted Information and Public

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opportunities, and remove barriers to physical activity.

to authorize the Lieutenant Governor in Council to determine whether a growth plan is required for any region/area in the province.

Education Increase and strategically coordinate targeted awareness, social marketing, education, and health communication campaigns and messages to increase physical activity.

● Work with partners to identify and implement best practices in land use and transportation planning to facilitate active transportation.

4. Provincially mandated establishment of multi-jurisdictional planning processes to coordinate land use plans btw municipalities, ensure consistency w/provincial goals.

Actions: Long-term planning and support for national information and education campaigns that are adequately funded, that reach Canadians using the most effective media and communications, and that are closely aligned with national, provincial/territorial and major municipal priorities should be implemented. Smaller communities should be supported in their efforts to educate citizens.

● Explore opportunities for tourism development around sport event hosting (e.g. games, tournaments).

5. Encourage citizen involvement in the planning process.

Priority themes for increasing physical activity and decreasing sedentary behaviours in Canada should be set across jurisdictions to guide education and marketing campaigns. Themes should support national, provincial/territorial, local and organizational efforts to make physical activity a viable choice in everyday life, help to remove barriers to choosing physical activity and promote a reduction in sedentary behaviours.

Outcome 3. Active Outdoors: Albertans are connected to nature and able to explore the outdoors.

6. Establish criteria or performance measures as part of land use plan development, against which a municipal or regional land use plan could be assessed.

The Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines and Canadian Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines should be broadly distributed to the population through informed stakeholders using plain language.

Strategic Priorities 7. Outline a common spatial vocabulary in the provincial Land Use Framework that describes the land use/land cover across the province.

Educational campaigns to stimulate leadership designed to increase physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour in

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workplaces, schools, and the home should be implemented, Campaigns should be supported by tools and resources for decision makers in each setting i.e., employers, school boards and principals, and parents/caregivers.

● Encourage partners to develop programs and services to connect adults and children with nature by providing opportunities for activities in a natural environment.

8. Enable the use of scenario modeling tools by regions and municipalities through training, financial support and institutional strengthening.

Targeted outreach should take place that is relevant to the needs of people with the greatest need and access issues.

● Encourage the development of education and stewardship programs that improve environmental and physical literacy, and that facilitate unstructured play in the outdoors.

9. Mandate the inclusion in municipal plans of a strategy for achieving intensification within identified areas. Regional plans should also identify major transit station areas and intensification corridors.

Decision and policy makers should be provided with current, reliable statistics on the status of physical activity and sedentary behaviour levels in Canada. Wherever possible, local level data should inform decisions.

● Implement Alberta‟s Plan for Parks to guide long term planning and ensure our parks are protected yet accessible for Albertan‟s recreation, active living and sport activities.

10. Determine, at the provincial/regional level, a system of greenbelts and urban growth boundaries to protect agricultural and other resource lands as well as conservation of natural areas.

3. High Quality, Accessible Programs and Services: Establish, enhance and reorient programs, services and social supports where necessary to prioritize physical activity and enhance physical literacy.

● Develop a provincial recreation trails strategy to accommodate diverse abilities, and link communities to the province‟s parks, outdoor spaces and recreation facilities through sustainable land and water-based trails.

11. Implementation of environmental overlays to protect water resources and other sensitive areas in order to preserve biodiversity and ecological integrity.

Actions: Elementary and secondary schools, with support form school boards and the Ministry of Education, should commit to the full delivery of the physical education curriculum to ensure that every child can develop the knowledge, skills and habits that are the foundation to a physically active lifestyle.

● Encourage local governments to develop local parks and outdoor spaces that are connected to other parks, outdoor spaces and trails in the region.

12. Encouragement of cluster or nodal development as an alternative to traditional development.

University teacher preparation Equip teachers to: -Deliver quality daily physical education. -Understand physical literacy.

● Develop an online tool for Albertans and 13. Encourage use of Transfer Development Schools

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visitors to easily find and learn about recreation, active living and sport opportunities in Alberta‟s parks and outdoor spaces.

Credits (TDCs) as a growth management strategy by piloting a provincially supported planning/financial aid program for high-growth municipalities to develop a TDC scheme.

- Ensure opportunities for daily physical activity, sports, spontaneous play, after school physical activity programs and active transportation.

Outcome 4. Active Engagement: Albertans are engaged in activity and in their communities.

14. Enable process for cost/benefit sharing (in terms of both revenue and infrastructure) between municipalities.

Schools -Implement practices designed to reduce and minimize extended sitting.

Strategic Priorities 15. Implementation of a combination of regulatory and market-based approaches to land use planning and growth management.

Municipal recreation and health departments to set targets for increasing pa and reducing sedentary behaviour of residents and monitor progress.

Working with voluntary sector agencies, identify, recruit, nurture and recognize volunteers in the recreation, active living and sport sectors.

Health …Resolved that the AUMA request the Alberta Government Health and Wellness Department to include the AUMA as a major stakeholder in all future consultations regarding the renewed model for patient-centered and coordinated EMS to allow input on decisions that may have a negative impact on other municipal emergency services or cause increased costs for delivering these services.

Facility managers of community schools, recreation facilities, clubs and organizations (private and public) should provide greater access for community members to increase participation.

Support leadership training programs for community recreation, active living and sport leaders. Programs should be evidence-based, standardized, and designed to ensure leaders have the core competencies they need to deal with changing demands in recreation, active living and sport.

Primary health care professionals should be trained in pa prescription, sedentary behaviour reduction and referral as part of their education and professional development. They should be important community leaders and champions for physical activity.

Work with partners to reduce barriers to participation for populations that are often less active, including families living in poverty, girls and women, Aboriginal people, persons with disabilities, recent immigrants and older citizens.

…Resolved that the AUMA requests that the Province of Alberta develop a model to encourage that resources are in place for the recruitment and retention of medical physicians and professionals particularly those in specialized practices such as Anesthetists, Obstetricians, etc.

Specific strategies should be developed by all delivery organizations to: - Encourage participation in physical activity programs. - To reduce sedentary behaviour in people with the greatest need and access issues.

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to ensure that residents in rural Alberta have access to such services.

Working with partners, explore the feasibility of establishing a Centre of Excellence for Recreation, Community and Quality of Life that will influence and provide benefits to community recreation.

Municipal Role in Healthy Communities - ARPA “Healthy by Nature” report on challenges. Municipal governments core functions that directly relate to health of their communities.

All employers should - Implement physical activity initiatives designed to increase employee activity while promoting a reduction in sedentary behaviours. Workplaces should have access to tools and resources to inform decisions by employers.

Outcome 5. Active Coordinated System: All partners involved in providing recreation, active living and sport opportunities to Albertans work together in a coordinated system.

Recreation – investment into infrastructure and programs/operations. Education, communications, promotion campaigns.

Investigate ways to promote „health enhancing pa within all levels of the sport system (e.g. The National Coaching Cert. Program, Canadian Sport for Life, Canadian Sport Policy.

Strategic Priorities Parks – countryside parks program to support planning, parkland acquisition, park development, conservation, operations and promotions. Enhancing green space, parkland and a comprehensive trail system within and between municipalities. Communicate opportunities that can be experienced in parks. Research project to establish baselines for parkland / open space creating a foundation for educating decision-makers. A comprehensive database and annual plan to update it could be organized through the Protocol of Cooperation between ARPA and AUMA.

4. Community Design

Built and Natural Environments

Social Infrastructure Reframe and modernize physical and social infrastructures to make physical activity an inviting practical and accessible priority.

● Government of Alberta funding and resource allocation related to recreation, active living and sport are guided by an assessment of how well the outcomes of this policy are being achieved.

Conservation of Land – take into account non-programmed recreational areas for health of individuals, environment and eco-systems.

Built and Natural Environments: Every municipality should develop or review and revise municipal/local government master plans to ensure that opportunities for pa are explicitly included in all facets of the plan, that barriers to an active lifestyle are eliminated, and that environments promoting sedentary behaviours are limited.

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● Support and share current research on recreation, active living and sport as well as best practices for program design and delivery.

Active Transportation – human powered travel, key role in promoting and creating supportive environments. Developing transit-centered transportation including safe travel to the hubs. Government of Alberta to take into account active transportation when provincial highways and roadways go through municipalities. Include active transportation as part of all roadway planning processes. Consider construction of Trail systems in building/rebuilding roads. Important to coordinate provincial and municipal approach to active transportation and full engagement between governments when planning for active transportation. Government of Alberta‟s 40-year transportation plan, AUMA urges inclusion of active transportation in that strategy. Make funds available for active transportation, infrastructure and educating citizens of benefits.

Within the municipal government master plan for physical activity, a strategic plan for transportation with priority on safe and active transportation as well as public transportation.

● Establish a mechanism to support interdepartmental and cross-sectoral network and consultations, and report on progress in achieving policy outcomes.

Land Use Planning – Sustainable land use planning municipally and regionally. Sustainable Land Use Planning Policy Paper (2007) comprehensive land use plans, intensification of land use, spatial planning and modeling allowing for informed decisions on sustainable land use. Inclusion of Urban, Industrial, Agricultural, Housing, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environmental Management Strategies.

Municipalities should plan and establish active transportation routes designed to meet the needs of everybody with safe and accessible routes to nearby neighbourhood and community wide destinations.

● Undertake a workforce strategy for the recreation, active living and sport sector to ensure an adequate supply of appropriately trained people.

Recommendations to Government of Alberta.

Governments should address the recreation infrastructure deficit to ensure everyone has access to in and outdoor facilities and public spaces where they can learn, experience, play, practice physical activity pursuits.

● In alignment with Land-use Framework Regional Plans, work with partners to identify and respond to regional

1. Revisit AUMA‟s proposal for a formalized provincial – municipal Sustainability Partnership Agreement. Based on outcomes,

Municipal governments should identify existing facilities and spaces (public and private) and develop plans to maximize

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recreation demands and trends, with consideration given to land use planning, design standards and its influence on active transportation.

municipalities would be charged with achieving outcomes that are agreed to with the Province, and report on outcomes annually as part of a Sustainability and Accountability System. This partnership would allow for great progress on Alberta‟s defined health outcomes, through coordinated provincial and local action.

community wide shared use to increase access by community members for physical activity.

● Develop and promote tourism based recreation, active living and sport opportunities (ecotourism, adventure tourism).

2. That the Alberta Health Act place a priority on achieving health outcomes for Alberta by supporting healthy communities.

Social Infrastructure: Governments should ensure that a community development approach is taken so that those affected are included in the design and delivery of the plan. Pops with the greatest need and access issues should be an integral part of plans and strategies to increase pa and reduce sedentary behaviours.

Outcome 6. Active Pursuit of Excellence: Albertans have opportunities to achieve athletic excellence.

3. That the Government and AUMA work to develop a new partnership program that supports the development of parks and recreation facilities – including capital AND operating funding – that make for healthy communities.

Municipal governments, in partnership with private sector should address disparities in human and financial investments in recreation and sport for under-served areas -rural, remote, low income, high density areas with inadequate access to opportunities.

Strategic Priorities 4. That the Government‟s comprehensive transportation plan include active transportation as a priority.

Pa practitioners, companies and orgs should ensure that their outreach, planning, programming, physical environments and staff are accessible and inviting to people from all circumstances.

● Update the Alberta Sport Plan using the Canadian Sport for Life model.

5. That the Government adopt as part of its design standards and policies, facilitation of and provision for alternative modes of transportation (cycling, running, walking), consider the construction of trail systems as part of the building/ rebuilding of roads, highways.

Volunteers should be valued, trained and supported as essential part of the delivery of pa opportunities. Identifying volunteers from people with the greatest access issues should be a priority as part of the community development approach.

Support coaching, volunteer and sport 6. That the Government partner with AUMA (and Physical activity practitioners and leaders

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science systems in alignment with the Canadian Sport for Life model.

potentially the federal government) to develop a healthy communities campaign that will be delivered provincially and locally.

trained to appreciate and understand the importance of reducing sedentary behaviour and promotion of physical activity.

Support a coordinated, collaborative, and accountable approach to hosting sporting events in Alberta which will provide Alberta athletes and coaches a home field advantage, and the opportunity for youth to be inspired by their heroes.

Recommendations to AUMA: 1. That the Board continue its work on building healthy communities, by exploring research projects in areas not addressed by this Policy Paper (e.g.: environmental health, injury prevention, crime prevention through social investments, poverty reduction, affordable housing).

Foundations for Change 1. Evidence and Knowledge exchange Sustain comprehensive systems to conduct research, surveillance and evaluation, and facilitate evidence based decision making and accountability.

Consistent with the Olympic Legacy MOU sighed between the Alberta Government and the British Columbia Government, continue to develop Olympic Legacy Utilization Strategies.

2. Produce and publish a series of member notices on the municipal role in developing healthy communities.

2. Strategic Investments Make substantive, sustained, and strategic investments.

National Recreation Summit Report, 2012, not included in this table

3. Partner with the ARPA and approach the Government of Alberta to fund a project that would create an Alberta inventory of municipal parkland, infrastructure and activities related to parks & recreation.

3. Mobilization Build capacity and mobilize leaders and partners across sectors.

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Active Community Strategy Final Template


Use this template as a guide to write your final strategy. This is bare bones template. Adjust it to reflect your community and add sections or any information and research that your community feels is important. Add pictures, links, and local resources to customize it for your community.

(Community Name)

Active Community Strategy

March 2013

Collective Community Action

In 2012 (Community Name) was chosen to be a part of the Active Community Strategy initiative together with nine other communities across Alberta. The Alberta Recreation and Parks (ARPA) partnered with Alberta Health Services (AHS) to secure funding through the Alberta Cancer Prevention Legacy Fund (ACPFL) for this initiative. The Active Community Strategy initiative previously worked with four communities in 2010-2011 as pilot communities. The intent of ACS is to continue working with and building community with focus specifically on a comprehensive active recreation/physical activity, active community strategy. Each community has taken a unique path using a similar process. Using the ACE Communities „Planning Framework for Community Development‟ (Herchmer, 2009) as a guide, they all took time to engage a variety of partners, built on strengths, and utilize existing knowledge, plans and research to inform priorities. All ten of the communities engaged community members, organizations and councils to determine priorities for building a more physically active community. Each Strategy is distinctive based on their needs, resources and location. Communities linked their priorities to local Community Sustainability Plans, the Active Alberta Policy, Active Canada 20/20 and other relevant plans and policies. Identifying the linkages with local, provincial and national efforts provide opportunities to build collaborative partnerships that extend beyond municipal boundaries.

Active Community Strategy Model and Resources

The ACS Model and Guide were used to develop this comprehensive community Strategy. They are based on evidence and beneficial practices for building a comprehensive active community strategy, include the process and discuss Four Core Areas of Focus for local strategies:

1. Activators

a. People to See – social environment, leadership & governance, partnerships & collaboration

b. Messages to Share – communications, marketing

2. Foundation

a. Research to Inform – research, evidence-based, evaluation, beneficial practices

b. Investment to Support – sustainability: economic, social, environmental

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3. Culture

a. Energizing Recreation – rethinking operations, creative solutions, shifting the culture

b. Policies to Promote – policy, advocacy

4. Activities

a. Places to Go – natural and built environment

b. Things to Do – special events, programs, incentives

c. Opportunities to Learn – education, knowledge, skills

The ACS Guide is available through ARPA at www.arpaonline.ca

Community name

Community is central to each Active Community Strategy. The vision of (Community) for their ACS (Vision information here).

For example:

“…Alberta‟s best known community; there is no other place like it. Our community is a picturesque town that appeals to all generations. Children play in the parks and walk down our safe, clean streets. We embrace and celebrate our diversity through community and cultural events. Our community spirit is showcased through performing arts events, public art, recreational activities and festivals such as Winterfest. As a community we have a wide variety of activities for entertainment and recreation including curling, hockey, dances, and movie theatres. Our youth and seniors take ownership for the community through activities that interest them. We are family-oriented, and inclusive. We are a dynamic community rooted in strong social connections, and a sense of belonging. Everyone has a home in High Level. Our community offers diverse housing options including houses, apartments, affordable housing unites and seniors‟ complexes. We have great social programs to provide people with assistance when needed. We are a healthy community where people can readily access various recreational facilities, or go for a walk along our natural trails. Wellness is more than just emergency healthcare in our community and we place importance on wellness for mind, body and spirit through local education, accessible recreation healthy food, and personal connections. We value our natural environment and as such have become a northern leader in environmental initiatives particularly in recycling, energy regeneration and waste management programs. Regionally, we are known for our committed and trustworthy local governance that is dedicated to providing an unprecedented quality of life for everyone. Our vibrant economy offers attractive local opportunities for the entire community. Strong community and industry partnerships are the foundation for reaching High Level‟s Sustainability Vision.”

With this guiding vision in mind, (a number of community sessions were hosted for those interested in developing an Active Community Strategy where priorities and ideas for getting more people more active more often were generated.) (Number) of priority areas emerged:

(Examples)


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1. Building the Best Community Possible

2. Increase Communication and Collaboration Across Sectors and Together With Community Members

3. Healthy, Involved Kids (0 – 18 years), Youth Development

4. Leadership and Volunteerism, Youth Development

5. Accessible Physical Activities and Food for All Residents

6. Utilize Existing Facilities, Indoor and Outdoor

7. Multi-Use Trails

8. Provide Programs and Events that Encourage People to Be Active in High Level

9. Increase Community Cultural Activities

10. Sustainable Use of Resources

(Inclusion of this extensive list, which reflects much of what is in the CSP, provides a solid foundation for a comprehensive Active Community Strategy. With numerous priorities there is some overlap and choosing where and how to start is an important step. Each priority fits into one or more of the Core Areas in the ACS Model, and existing groups and organizations are already working on some of these areas. For example, there are many programs and events that encourage people to be active, the Town has dedicated funds towards the multi-use trail system and their website is being updated. After the community sessions a working group came together narrowing the focus in order to take action. The group decided to start by concentrating on Communication and Collaboration, which is integral for each of the priorities. )

What’s Next?

Because the Strategy is continually evolving the ACS initiative is not complete. (Community name) has just begun to look at implementation with a clear picture of moving the community to increased activity through (collaboration and communication). They plan to utilize seed funds to (support communication and collaboration). More specific actions are included in the Goals and Priorities section later in this document. To get involved contact a member of the working group for more information.

Linking Existing Policies and Plans

Local plans, provincial and national policies are in place and connect with the ACS priorities/goals that (Community name) has identified. These directly relate to the local (Community Sustainability Plan, the Active Alberta Policy, the recent AUMA Healthy Alberta Communities Convention Policy Paper and the Coalition for Active Living’s Pan-Canadian Physical Activity Strategy). This can be seen in the „Linking Existing Policies and Plans‟ chart at the end of this document. It can be used to verify priorities, build support and create collaborative partnerships within (Community name) and that reach beyond local relationships.

Goals and Priorities

(Initially leaders identified Barriers, Reference Materials, Other Initiatives & Existing Resources, and Ideas/Opportunities in each of the Core Areas of Focus using a mind map). This helped set the stage for identifying priority areas and potential opportunities.

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Goals, Outcomes and Action Plan

(Insert the Active Community Strategy Planning Template here)

Linking Existing Policies and Plans

(Insert Policy Linkages document here)

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Active Community Strategy Story Template


Use this template to guide your group in writing your story for evaluation purposes and to share your learnings and future direction with others.

Each community will develop a „story‟ of their Active Community Strategy experience.

The purpose is for communities to capture their story in an interesting way so that it can be used to:

Reflect on the process, learnings and successes

Share what they‟ve done and where they‟re going

Gain support from government officials, granting agencies, community members

Build excitement and momentum for upcoming engagement and activities The stories will be used by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association to promote and evaluate the Active Community Strategy initiative.

What will it look like?

This could be in the form of: a pictorial essay using profound pictures, the action steps you took, an activity map or mind map, a story board, a view from above, looking from the future, a map of where your journey took you, an overall theme (i.e. Irricana white picket fences), a model, info graphic, video, collage, written story, or a power point presentation.

It is not an extensive piece, a one to three page story or 3 to five minute video will do. Use your creative skills. Tell the story through the media that resonates with you as a community/group. Share your experience, process, outcomes, learnings and how you will continue on.

Here‟s a sample outline for what and how you might create your community story:

Introduction

Beginning your ACS Journey

- How it all came to be - Who, what, where, why, when - Could use text from your plan

Body

- What happened? - Who did you bring together, and how did you do that (the process)? - What were some of the biggest challenges? - Describe a turning point or AHA moment, when it all came together. - Share the successes and progress your community made.

Ending

- What did you end up with? - Describe what you learned about community leadership and your community. - If you have any tips to pass along, what are they? - Now what, what will you do to carry on?

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Web Resources

ARPA various community resources and Benefits Hub - www.arpaonline.ca

Active Alberta Policy: 2011 – 2021 – http://tpr.alberta.ca/activealberta/docs/ActiveAlbertaPolicy.pdf

Active Canada 20/20 – http://www.activecanada2020.ca/active-canada-20-20

Coalition for Active Living: Framework for a Pan-Canadian Active Living Strategy - http://www.activeliving.ca/english/index.cfm?fa=WhatWeDo.main

Public Health Agency of Canada: 2005 Integrated Pan-Canadian Healthy Living Strategy - http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/ipchls-spimmvs/action-eng.php

World Health Organization: Physical Activity and Health – http://www.who.int/topics/physical_activity/en/

Canadian Index of Wellbeing – www.ciw.ca

Alberta Urban Municipalities Association (AUMA) Healthy Alberta Communities Policy Paper (2010) – www.auma.ca/live/digitalAssets/44/44266_Policy_Statement_on_Healthy_Alberta_Communities.pdf

Centre for Active Living: 2013 Alberta Survey on Physical Activity - http://www.centre4activeliving.ca/publications/ab-survey-physical-activity/2013/report.pdf

ActNowBC, Active Communities Toolkit – www.activecommunities.bc.ca


http://tpr.alberta.ca/activealberta/docs/ActiveAlbertaPolicy.pdf

http://tpr.alberta.ca/activealberta/docs/ActiveAlbertaPolicy.pdf

http://www.activecanada2020.ca/active-canada-20-20

http://www.activecanada2020.ca/active-canada-20-20

http://www.activeliving.ca/english/index.cfm?fa=WhatWeDo.main

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/ipchls-spimmvs/action-eng.php

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/ipchls-spimmvs/action-eng.php

http://www.who.int/topics/physical_activity/en/

http://www.ciw.ca/

http://www.auma.ca/live/digitalAssets/44/44266_Policy_Statement_on_Healthy_Alberta_Communities.pdf

http://www.auma.ca/live/digitalAssets/44/44266_Policy_Statement_on_Healthy_Alberta_Communities.pdf

http://www.centre4activeliving.ca/publications/ab-survey-physical-activity/2013/report.pdf

http://www.centre4activeliving.ca/publications/ab-survey-physical-activity/2013/report.pdf

http://www.activecommunities.bc.ca/

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Active Community Strategies Online

British Columbia - http://www.bcrpa.bc.ca/recreation_parks/active_communities.htm

Nova Scotia - http://gov.ns.ca/hpp/pasr/akhk-municipal-leadership.asp , http://www.activepictoucounty.ca/assets/files/1.strategicpl.pdf

Ontario - http://www.mhp.gov.on.ca/en/heal/actionplan-EN.pdf

Australia - http://beactive.wa.gov.au/docs/BestPrac_Aug03.pdf

United Kingdom - http://activelivingbydesign.org/about-albd/albd-has-new-look , http://www.stratford.gov.uk/files/seealsodocs/8691/Active%20Communities%20Strategy.pdf

New Zealand - http://www.sparc.org.nz/en-nz/communities-and-clubs/Active-Communities/Sharing-Good-Practice/Pathway-2-Health-/ , http://www.sparc.org.nz/Documents/Communities%20and%20Clubs/physical%20activity%20plans/Active_Eastern_Bay_PAS_Exec_Summary.pdf

http://www.bcrpa.bc.ca/recreation_parks/active_communities.htm

http://gov.ns.ca/hpp/pasr/akhk-municipal-leadership.asp

http://gov.ns.ca/hpp/pasr/akhk-municipal-leadership.asp

http://www.activepictoucounty.ca/assets/files/1.strategicpl.pdf

http://www.mhp.gov.on.ca/en/heal/actionplan-EN.pdf

http://beactive.wa.gov.au/docs/BestPrac_Aug03.pdf

http://activelivingbydesign.org/about-albd/albd-has-new-look

http://activelivingbydesign.org/about-albd/albd-has-new-look

http://www.stratford.gov.uk/files/seealsodocs/8691/Active%20Communities%20Strategy.pdf

http://www.stratford.gov.uk/files/seealsodocs/8691/Active%20Communities%20Strategy.pdf

http://www.sparc.org.nz/en-nz/communities-and-clubs/Active-Communities/Sharing-Good-Practice/Pathway-2-Health-/

http://www.sparc.org.nz/en-nz/communities-and-clubs/Active-Communities/Sharing-Good-Practice/Pathway-2-Health-/

http://www.sparc.org.nz/Documents/Communities%20and%20Clubs/physical%20activity%20plans/Active_Eastern_Bay_PAS_Exec_Summary.pdf



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Albertans that had access to places where they could be active were 2.7 times more likely to be physically active.

Print Resources

ACE Communities Final Report. ARPA, (2012).

In Alberta…Recreation and Parks Matter! Research Summary. Alberta Recreation and Parks Association, (2008).

Play, It‟s Serious Business: A discussion paper prepared by Alberta Recreation and Parks Association, (2011).

Pilot Active Community Strategy Report. ARPA, (2012).

Active Community Strategy Evaluation (2013). Pending completion.

Herchmer, B. (2013) Community Building for the Recreation Practitioner. Edmonton: Grassroots Enterprises

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Resources for Provincial Action

Criteria for Community Selection

2012/13 Active Community Strategy Initiative How to use this tool

Use this as a guide to develop the criteria for selecting communities. Include it in the expression of interest so that communities know what selection is based on.

1. Initiative – having the interest, leadership and commitment to come forward when invited to participate.

2. Community Capacity or Readiness – have demonstrated capacity through major community initiatives such as ACE Communities; they are familiar with a community development process, have identified and supported the development of grassroots leadership, community values citizen engagement and other community development principles.

3. Have the commitment of two community leaders that will steward this process preferably from health and recreation.

4. Municipal support is in place through council or senior administration.

5. Community support or interest is evident.

6. Value for physical activity is profiled and many assets/programs are in place.

7. Sustainability – there is potential for the community to support or be supported by other active living leaders within and across communities that supports longevity of the community work.

8. This community is not receiving funding from other similar AHS initiatives (e.g. Thrive) this year.

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Appendices Appendix A: Evidence and Beneficial Practice Based on evidence and beneficial practice

The development process for the Active Community Strategy integrates ideas and practice from a variety of research, resources and practice including:

International, national, and provincial recreation, health and active living research from sources such as:

World Health Organization: http://www.who.int/topics/physical_activity/en/

Public Health Agency of Canada: http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/pa-ap/02paap-eng.php

International, national and provincial active living policies, strategies and best practices such as:

o Ottawa Charter for Heath Promotion and the Determinants of Health (1986)

o Integrated Pan-Canadian Healthy Living Strategy (2005)

o Toronto Charter on Physical Activity (2010) http://www.globalpa.org.uk/charter/download.php

o Active Canada 20/20 o Active Alberta Policy: 2011-2021 o AUMA Healthy Alberta Communities Policy Paper

(2010)

Resources gathered from the ARPA and the Benefits Hub such as: o Alberta Active Communities Funding Proposal, 2004 o Foundations for Action (ARPA, 2006) o A Toolkit for Community Leaders (Herchmer, 2009)

Experts in the field and from community such as: o Provincial Active Living Resource Group and Active

Community Strategy Integration Group (as listed on the inside cover)

o Alberta Active Community Strategy community leaders

http://www.who.int/topics/physical_activity/en/

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/pa-ap/02paap-eng.php

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-ps/hl-mvs/pa-ap/02paap-eng.php

http://www.globalpa.org.uk/charter/download.php

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Appendix B: Historical Path

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Appendix C: Provincial Process

This is an initial piece of work focused on how provincial decision makers, i.e. government officials, provincial organization leaders, coalitions, and funders can take action and support this movement on a provincial scale. It continues to be a work in progress.

This document focuses on how provincial decision makers, i.e. government officials, provincial organization leaders, coalitions, and funders can take action and support the active community movement on a provincial scale. Further development of this section is pending.

Building Provincial Readiness

Traditionally sectors work somewhat isolated from each other. Collaborative initiatives and partnership development means changing the way we work at all levels and requires intentional focus on shifting how we do business at a provincial level. In tight economic times we often become more territorial, trying to hold on to resources, human and financial, however, by being open to the possibilities of collaboration, we can become more impactful over the long term. At the provincial level an inter-sectoral approach can create innovative solutions towards common goals.

When looking to the future, identify sectors that have common goals and build relationships where priorities align. For example, the Active Community Strategy initiative began through the ARPA, Recreation sector, and partnered with the AHS, Health, in order to achieve the goal of healthier, more active communities. Other sectors such as Justice, Aboriginal Affairs, Business and Education have been engaged to some degree, and there is opportunity to build those and other relationships further.

Walking the Talk

To build credibility in the Active Community Strategy process and for pragmatic provincial outcomes, it is important to work from the same principles and values as at the community level. With this in mind the Provincial Active Living Integration Group was formed. It includes leaders in the Recreation, Health and Active Living sectors. A community development approach is the basis of how the active community movement in Alberta has grown. It works at a community level, and provincially a similar process is being used to increase impact. Ask your organization if you are walking the talk.

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Sustainability

Economic, social and environmental sustainability are core elements in taking provincial action. The Active Community Strategy holds strong roots in the Alberta Active Communities initiative that began in 2004 (see historical path chart). Moving forward almost ten years the Active Community Strategy initiative builds on provincial action. At each step along the way, discussions, possibilities and opportunities for building sustained momentum for active communities in Alberta have been foundational. With the 2012 Alberta Health Services (AHS) partnership and funding through the Alberta Cancer Prevention Legacy Fund (ACPLF), this initiative continues to facilitate the active community movement. Bridging sectors is a necessary step to sustain provincial action.

Evaluation is also a key component in maintaining vigour. While evaluation based on behavioural outcomes is more widely understood, the Active Community Strategy initiative embraces evaluation of supportive environments, leadership and of the process at a community level. With a focus on these indicators, rather than individual behavioural change, active community initiatives have seen growth and success across the province. It takes time and foundational change to see the impact at an individual behavioural level; therefore, the Alberta active community movement is focused on building from the ground up. The Active Community Strategy specifically, is directed at a comprehensive approach to change. This includes policy and cultural shifts, programs, facilities and education, and is based on research, investment and sustainability. When developing an evaluation structure for such an initiative keep in mind the process and environmental factors. Funders look to evaluation for indication of success and support for funding. Education and understanding of this type of evaluation is important in gaining support.

Technology and Supporting Platforms

Methods for communication across the province are integral to building more active communities and communities of practice. The Active Community Strategy uses a variety of technologies such as: teleconference, webinar, Google Docs, and Facebook, to open lines of communication, encourage sharing, and to provide educational opportunities. With coaches and ARPA staff, community leaders in rural areas, and other experts in the field of recreation and health scattered across the province, the ability to connect beyond geographical boundaries has proven to be a core factor contributing to success.

Community Process

To support real change in community at the provincial level there are a number of foundational elements to consider.

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Experienced, knowledgeable facilitator/coaches

Having knowledgeable, experienced facilitators who understand: community building, facilitation, leadership development, physical activity, active communities, and health promotion, influence the ability of communities to progress. These coach/facilitators are involved in initial teleconferences, community visits and retreats, and are the guides who work directly with community. When considering whom to recruit as Active Community Strategy facilitator/coaches, involve those with expertise in both community process and subject matter. This unique mix of experience and knowledge, of big picture vision and practical application, provides a solid foundation for getting more people, more active, more often.

Supporting community readiness

Communities who understand community building and concepts of community development will have more success. A set of criteria has been identified as considerations in the application process (criteria shown in the Tools Section).

To support communities in developing awareness and understanding of community building ARPA offers Community Building Workshops and Community Leadership development through ACE Communities work. Once capacity across the province builds, it is more likely that communities will be ready to develop an Active Community Strategy.

Community selection

The selection process for Active Community Strategy Communities is grounded in community development principles; the desire needs to be driven by the community. Communities are invited to apply to become Active Community Strategy communities through a provincial expression of interest (EOI) process. Prior to the EOI deadline, ARPA offers an information webinar to interested communities. This helps communities self-identify if they are ready to apply for the initiative.

The EOI includes a number of criteria for selection (see Tools Section- Criteria for Community Selection). Readiness is one; involvement from both recreation and health sectors is another important criteria. The intent of having partners from these two sectors is to enhance relationships at a local level and create more opportunities for convergence in grassroots initiatives. There are many similar outcomes between health and recreation therefore, these are a good place to start. Communities are encouraged to have support from municipal government and to work with other sectors as well. A provincial selection committee reviews the applications and determines communities that fit and those that may need further capacity building before entering into the Active Community Strategy process.

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Building provincial connections

Once communities are selected a Community Leader Retreat is held. This introduces leaders to the process; other leaders, coaches, facilitators and starts building relationships that are crucial for ongoing support and development along the way.

So begins the community journey. Provincial action sets the stage for community action that in turn, leads to increased health and wellbeing. To find out more about provincial action in generating Active Community Strategies contact ARPA at www.arpaonline.ca

©Alberta Recreation and Parks Association, 2013